{
  "id": 11181874,
  "title": "US death row inmate survives execution attempt after two lethal injections",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/01/us-death-row-inmate-survives-execution-attempt-after-two-lethal-11181874",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-10-01T10:46:05.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "GBC Ghana",
    "slug": "gbc-ghana",
    "url": "https://www.gbcghanaonline.com/world/us-death-row-pike/2026/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Christa Pike, a 50-year-old death row inmate in Tennessee, survived an execution attempt involving two lethal injections administered at Riverbend Maximum Security Institution in Nashville. Pike, who was sentenced to death in 1996 for the murder of 19-year-old Colleen Slemmer, was taken to the hospital after losing consciousness and continuing to have a heartbeat. Her legal team filed an emergency motion to halt her execution as it was happening, claiming she was now receiving life-saving measures. The attempted execution took place at approximately 20:00 local time (01:00 GMT on Thursday). Tennessee Governor Bill Lee stated that a comprehensive third-party review would be conducted to determine what occurred, as the state's execution protocol does not specify procedures for when a person remains alive after the second set of drug syringes. Pike's legal team stated that the protocol had been followed, despite the botched execution, citing issues such as difficult vein access, degraded pentobarbital, and a lack of emergency medical care. Pike's lawyers argued that she had not achieved a sufficient blood level of pentobarbital, which could have led to brain injury due to delayed resuscitation. The US Supreme Court had previously allowed the lethal injections to proceed, despite two earlier legal challenges from Pike's lawyers. The attempted execution marked the second failed execution in Tennessee in 2026.",
  "summary": "Tennessee death row inmate Christa Pike has been taken to hospital after an attempt to execute her by two lethal injections failed, her lawyer says. Her legal team filed an emergency motion to halt the convicted murderer’s execution as it was happening, saying: “Ms Pike has lost consciousness and still has a heartbeat and is […]",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": "https://urgent.news/ill/11181874.png",
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 8,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "GBC Ghana",
        "title": "US death row inmate survives execution attempt after two lethal injections",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/01/us-death-row-inmate-survives-execution-attempt-after-two-lethal",
        "published": "2026-10-01T08:06:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "The Sydney Morning Herald",
        "title": "US death row inmate survives two lethal injections",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/01/us-death-row-inmate-survives-two-lethal-injections-11151416",
        "published": "2026-10-01T08:41:06.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "The Age",
        "title": "US death row inmate survives two lethal injections",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/01/us-death-row-inmate-survives-two-lethal-injections",
        "published": "2026-10-01T08:41:06.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Gulf News",
        "title": "Tennessee woman on death row survives two lethal injections",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/01/tennessee-woman-on-death-row-survives-two-lethal-injections",
        "published": "2026-10-01T09:59:24.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "CBC News",
        "title": "Tennessee governor orders outside review after death row inmate Christa Pike survives execution attempt",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/01/tennessee-governor-orders-outside-review-after-death-row-inmate",
        "published": "2026-10-01T10:17:37.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Adom Online",
        "title": "US death row inmate survives execution attempt after two lethal injections",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/01/us-death-row-inmate-survives-execution-attempt-after-two-lethal-11196907",
        "published": "2026-10-01T12:42:49.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "National Post",
        "title": "Female death row inmate survives two ‘botched’ lethal injections, taken to hospital",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/01/female-death-row-inmate-survives-two-botched-lethal-injections-taken",
        "published": "2026-10-01T13:41:28.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}