US death row inmate survives failed execution after two lethal injections

Christa Pike, a 50-year-old woman sentenced to death for the 1995 murder of Colleen Slemmer in Tennessee, survived an execution attempt on Wednesday. Two attempts were made to administer lethal injections, but Pike remained conscious and even snored for over 40 minutes after the second dose of pentobarbital. The Tennessee Department of Correction has yet to provide a reason for the failure, while Pike's lawyers submitted an emergency motion to stop the execution.

The case gained attention due to Pike's claims of childhood sexual abuse and neglect, which were not properly considered when she was sentenced. The US Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit initially halted the execution, but the US Supreme Court later overturned the stay, allowing Tennessee to proceed. Pike is set to be the first woman executed in Tennessee in over 200 years, with only 18 women executed since capital punishment resumed in 1976, compared to over 1,600 men.