Convicted murderer Christa Pike leaves hospital, returns to prison after botched execution

Christa Pike, a 50-year-old convicted murderer, has been discharged from hospital and returned to prison after surviving a botched execution attempt in Tennessee. According to her lawyers, Pike was given two doses of the lethal injection drug pentobarbital on September 30, but she remained breathing and was taken to hospital in critical condition.

Pike has been returned to the Deborah K Johnson Rehabilitation Center, a women's prison where she has been held for over 30 years. Her lawyers stated that she is continuing to receive medical care at the prison and that they will continue to track her recovery.

Pike was sentenced to death for the 1995 murder of her 19-year-old classmate, Colleen Slemmer. The Death Penalty Information Center reports that Pike is the only person known to have survived an execution attempt in the United States. According to The Guardian US, Pike's lawyers described her as "somewhat foggy" and unable to use her arms much after waking up, but she was "up and walking" with help.

Brief written by urgent.news from France 24, The Guardian US, Hindustan Times - World News, South China Morning Post, Axios — 5 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.