Christa Pike survives Tennessee lethal injection attempt after drug doses fail

UPDATE - follow-up to Christa Pike botched execution: How lethal injection is used in death penalty: Christa Gail Pike survived a lethal injection attempt in Tennessee after receiving two doses of pentobarbital. The execution was meant to be the state's first for a woman in nearly two hundred years, following her conviction for the 1995 murder of classmate Colleen Slemmer. Journalists who watched the event reported hearing loud noises, gasps, and complaints of pain from Pike while she kicked off her sheets. Her lawyers filed a motion stating that executioners had used both syringes of chemicals while she was still alive.

Official Response

The Tennessee Department of Correction stated that it followed every step of the state's lawful execution protocol and that Pike was taken to an off-site medical facility. Human rights experts had opposed the execution due to her age when the crime happened, her childhood trauma, and untreated mental illness. A federal appeals court had temporarily paused the execution one hour before it was set to begin to review claims of past abuse, but the U.S. Supreme Court lifted that stay.

Context

Lethal injection is the primary method of capital punishment used across many U.S. states and federal systems. However, many states have faced difficulties sourcing standard execution drugs due to pushback from manufacturers, leading some to test new drug combinations or alternative methods.