Pike on life support after failed execution attempt in US
Convicted killer Christa Pike was left gravely ill, unconscious and hospitalised on life support after Tennessee's failed attempt to execute her by lethal injection, her lawyers have said.
Christa Pike, a convicted killer, remains on life support following a failed execution attempt in Tennessee. Hospital staff are working to save her life and remove the drug pentobarbital from her system. Her lawyers filed an emergency motion seeking a court order to preserve evidence from the botched execution at Riverbend Maximum Security Institution in Nashville.
Pike suffered severe injuries during the execution attempt, including swollen, burned, and blistered arms due to the highly alkaline pentobarbital seeping into her tissues. The execution team failed to realize the IV lines were placed incorrectly, allowing the drug to enter her body. Pike's lawyers accuse Correction Department officials of disregarding prior warnings from her doctors about her medical conditions.
The botched execution, Tennessee's second this year, prompted Governor Bill Lee to suspend all death penalty attempts for 2026 and order an independent review. Pike, 50, was convicted of murdering a 19-year-old classmate in 1995, making her the only person executed in the US for a crime committed by a teenager. Despite her clemency petition citing her history of severe neglect, sexual abuse, and untreated mental illness, the US Supreme Court lifted a stay of execution earlier in the day.
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