The United States Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday to allow the state of Tennessee to execute Christa Pike, who survived the attempt after her heart continued to beat following two lethal injections of pentobarbital. Pike, now 50, was convicted of a 1995 murder committed when she was 18 years old, setting off a rapid sequence of legal challenges, a last-minute stay, and a hospital transfer.
Supreme Court Overturns Last-Minute Stay
The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday reversed a decision by a federal appeals court that had halted Pike’s execution earlier that morning. Federal appeals court judges had temporarily blocked the execution to review whether Pike’s claims of childhood sexual abuse and rape had been properly weighed before her death sentence, according to court records. The state attorney general appealed that block to the nation’s highest court, which cleared the way for the execution to proceed.
Execution Attempt at Riverbend Maximum Security Institution
The execution took place at the Riverbend Maximum Security Institution in Nashville at 8:00 p.m. local time on Wednesday. Prison staff administered two doses of pentobarbital, after which a curtain was drawn in front of witnesses, according to the Associated Press. Media representatives were asked to leave the viewing room at a certain point during the procedure. Pike’s legal team filed an extraordinary motion to stop the execution while it was underway, stating that she had lost consciousness after the injections but her heart was still beating and gurgling sounds were heard. District Judge Clifton L. Corker granted the request, noting that medical personnel began providing required medical care.
Legal Team and Medical Expert Reactions
Pike's lawyers stated that she was provided life-saving care after being transferred to an external medical facility following the failed procedure. In a statement to The Tennessean, the legal team asserted that the state failed to carry out a lawful execution. They pointed to difficult vein access, blown veins, degraded pentobarbital, and a lack of emergency medical care as validating their prior concerns. Joel Zivot, a professor at the Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta, stated that Pike likely never reached a sufficient blood level of pentobarbital to trigger respiratory and cardiovascular collapse. Zivot added that she will likely suffer brain damage due to the delay in initiating resuscitation.
Background of the 1995 Knoxville Murder
Pike was convicted for the January 1995 murder of 19-year-old Colleen Slemmer, a fellow student from a vocational training center in Knoxville. Pike, along with a 17-year-old boyfriend and another female accomplice, lured Slemmer to a wooded area where Pike and her boyfriend tortured and killed her while the third student kept watch. The crime drew widespread media attention due to its brutality, which included carving a pentagram into the victim’s chest and taking a piece of her skull as a souvenir. Prior to the execution date, Pike’s attorneys submitted a 226-page petition asking Governor Bill Lee to commute her sentence to life without parole, detailing her history of severe trauma, neglect, and rapes at ages 11 and 17, alongside diagnoses of bipolar and post-traumatic stress disorders. Governor Lee rejected the clemency request on Monday.
Frequently Asked Questions About the Case
Why did the U.S. Supreme Court intervene?
The Supreme Court overturned a federal appeals court stay that had been issued on Wednesday morning to examine claims regarding Pike’s childhood trauma and abuse.
What substance was used in the execution?
The state of Tennessee used pentobarbital administered in two doses, according to the Associated Press and state corrections officials.
Did Christa Pike survive the execution attempt?
Yes.
When was the last execution of a woman in Tennessee?
Prior to this case, a woman had not been executed in the state of Tennessee since 1820.
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