Tennessee reviews failed execution after Christa Pike survives injections
Pike was taken to hospital after two doses of pentobarbital. Governor Bill Lee has ordered an independent review and halted the state’s remaining planned execution this year.
Christa Pike survived Tennessee’s attempt to execute her by lethal injection after receiving two doses of pentobarbital on Wednesday. She was taken to hospital for life-saving measures; her condition remained unclear the following morning.
The Tennessee Department of Correction said staff followed the state’s protocol, which did not allow further procedures beyond those carried out. It has not explained why the doses did not prove fatal.
Pike’s legal team alleged the pentobarbital was degraded, a claim the department has not specifically addressed. The department said the chemical in its protocol had consistently been effective.
Governor Bill Lee ordered a third-party review and said the state’s last planned execution for the year would not proceed. Officials have not said whether they will make another attempt to execute Pike.
Pike, 50, was sentenced to death for the 1995 killing of 19-year-old Colleen Slemmer. The failed attempt followed a separate postponement in Tennessee this year, when staff could not find a vein to administer a lethal injection to Tony Carruthers.
