Stories
US Death Row Inmate Christa Pike Awake After Failed Execution
- •Christa Pike survived two lethal injection doses of pentobarbital at the Riverbend Maximum Security Institution in Nashville, Tennessee.
- •Her lawyers confirmed she is conscious, speaking, and receiving medical care in a hospital after the unprecedented failed execution.
- •Experts suggest the failed execution might be due to expired drugs, difficulty finding veins, or administration by untrained personnel.
- •Tennessee Governor Bill Lee has paused all state executions for the remainder of the year and called for a comprehensive third-party review.
- •Pike was originally sentenced to death for the brutal 1995 killing of her classmate Colleen Slemmer when she was 18 years old.
Key Questions Answered
Pike survived two doses of the sedative pentobarbital on September 30 at the Riverbend Maximum Security Institution. While authorities have not explained what went wrong, experts suggested potential reasons including out-of-date or invalid drugs, difficulty finding veins due to a history of drug abuse, or administration by incompetent individuals since doctors are barred from participating.
Following the failed execution attempt, Pike was rushed to the hospital, placed on a ventilator, and had the pentobarbital cleared from her system. Her lawyers confirmed that she is conscious, speaking, and receiving medical care, though she sustained grievous arm injuries and remains handcuffed and shackled.
In 1996, Pike was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to death for the brutal January 1995 killing of her 19-year-old classmate, Colleen Slemmer. Pike, who was 18 at the time, believed Slemmer was a romantic rival and lured her to a secluded area where she and her accomplices attacked and killed her.
