Christa Pike now walking after US execution went wrong, lawyer says

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  • Tennessee
  • Christa Pike
  • Pike County, Kentucky
  • Pike County, Illinois
  • United States
  • Nashville, Tennessee
  • BBC
  • Bill Lee (Tennessee politician)
Empty hospital corridor in soft morning light with an unoccupied wheelchair parked against the wall near a closed door at the far end.

What happened

Christa Pike, 50, survived two doses of pentobarbital during Tennessee's failed attempt to execute her on Sept. 30. After days unconscious on a ventilator, she woke Oct. 7 and has since taken her first assisted steps and eaten, her lawyers say. Her arms remain badly injured, and Gov. Bill Lee has halted executions and ordered an independent review.

Summary

Eight days after Tennessee tried and failed to execute her with two doses of the barbiturate pentobarbital, Christa Pike, 50, has taken her first steps with help and eaten for the first time, her lawyers said. She spent her first days in the hospital unconscious on a ventilator, then woke Oct. 7 and asked, "where am I and who are you?" Lawyer Stephen Ferrell told the BBC she can walk only around her room. He said her arms are badly hurt and that she is "somewhat foggy" and loses her train of thought easily. Attorney Randy Spivey said she has pneumonia and a blood clot. [1] [4] [6] [7] [8]

Her lawyers say the execution team used at least seven needles trying to find a vein, and one came out bent. Her arms were left swollen, burned and blistered, and the lawyers believe the drug went into her body instead of her bloodstream. They had warned the state months earlier that her veins would be hard to reach. The Department of Correction says it followed its protocol, which allows one backup dose and has no plan for what happens if that fails. Gov. Bill Lee has halted executions for the rest of the year and ordered a third-party review. A judge ordered the state to preserve evidence, and Correction Commissioner Frank Strada is resigning. [1] [4] [10]

Pike was 18 when she and her boyfriend, Tadaryl Shipp, then 17, tortured and killed 19-year-old Colleen Slemmer, a classmate at Knoxville Job Corps, in 1995. Pike has never denied her role. Shipp is serving a life sentence and was denied parole in 2025; a third person, Shadolla Peterson, pleaded guilty as an accessory and got probation. Whether Tennessee will try again to execute Pike is unclear. Her attorneys want Lee to commute her sentence to life without parole and say she should never face another attempt. In the governor's race, Sen. Marsha Blackburn wants the electric chair back, while Democrat Jerri Green promises a moratorium on executions. [1] [2] [4] [6] [10]

Summary written by Vox Populi News from the 10 sources below. See all sources

Key questions

Why did Christa Pike's execution fail?

No official cause has been given. Her lawyers say the team struggled to place IV lines and believe the pentobarbital went into her body instead of her bloodstream, while medical experts have also suggested a vein may have blown or the drug may have been faulty. [1] [10]

Will Tennessee try to execute Christa Pike again?

That is still undecided. Gov. Bill Lee has paused executions for the rest of the year and ordered a review, while Pike's lawyers are pushing him to commute her sentence to life in prison without parole. [1] [6] [10]

What crime was Christa Pike convicted of?

She was sentenced to death for the 1995 torture and killing of 19-year-old Colleen Slemmer, a fellow Job Corps student in Knoxville. She committed the crime with her then-boyfriend, Tadaryl Shipp, who is serving a life sentence. [1] [2] [4]

Sources 10

  1. 1Aol

    Christa Pike is 'up and walking' for first time after failed execution, lawyer says

    Christa Pike is "up and walking" in hospital, her lawyer said, just more than a week after she survived two lethal injections during a botched execution in Tennessee.

    Read on Aol (opens in a new tab)
  2. 2Fox News

    Lethal injection survivor Christa Pike's former satanist boyfriend could be released in 5 years

    Shipp, who was 17 at the time of the Knoxville killing, won't face another parole hearing until October 2031 NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!

    Michael Ruiz

    Read on Fox News (opens in a new tab)
  3. 3New York Post

    Christa Pike's aunt reveals 'excited' reaction to bungled execution after killer was 'ready to go'

    Christa Pike's family was "excited" when her execution was bungled even though the convicted murderer was "ready to go," according to her aunt.

    Alex Diaz

    Read on New York Post (opens in a new tab)
  4. 4USA Today

    Christa Pike wasn't alone in her crime. What happened to accomplices

    Two other people were involved in the crime that landed Christa Pike on death row. They got lesser punishments.

    Read on USA Today (opens in a new tab)
  5. 5Newsweek

    5 hard truths about Christa Pike's botched execution

    Christa Pike is awake and has started walking and talking after a failed execution, according to her legal team.

    David Averre

    Read on Newsweek (opens in a new tab)
  6. 6HuffPost

    Christa Pike Walking With Help After Failed Execution Attempt

    Lawyers for the Tennessee inmate say she has taken her first steps with assistance, just one week after a failed execution left her in critical condition. NASHVILLE, Tenn.

    Read on HuffPost (opens in a new tab)
  7. 7TMZ

    Christa Pike Up and Walking After Failed Execution, Lawyer Says

    Christa Pike is back on her feet after surviving two lethal injections ... she's now able to walk again following the botched execution. Her lawyer, Stephen Ferrell, told the BBC ...

    Read on TMZ (opens in a new tab)
  8. 8U.S. News & World Report

    Christa Pike Is Walking With Help and Eating After Failed Execution Attempt, Her Attorneys Say

    NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Christa Pike has taken her first steps with assistance, just one week after a failed attempt to execute the Tennessee woman left her in critical condition, her lawyers said…

    Associated Press

    Read on U.S. News & World Report (opens in a new tab)
  9. 9Breitbart

    Lawyer: Murderer Christa Pike Is 'Up and Walking' After Failed Execution

    Murderer Christa Pike's lawyer said she has been walking around her hospital room after surviving two botched lethal injections on September 30 in Tennessee.

    Amy Furr

    Read on Breitbart (opens in a new tab)
  10. 10CNN

    The lethal injection drug used in Christa Pike's botched execution was just used in Texas. A look at the two cases

    Two scheduled executions a week apart have highlighted the ongoing debate over the practice of lethal injection in the US, with both using the same drug but yielding dramatically different outcomes.

    Karina Tsui

    Read on CNN (opens in a new tab)