Tennessee attempted to execute Christa Pike by lethal injection on Wednesday, but the initial dose of pentobarbital and a backup dose both failed to kill her. She remains alive and is receiving medical care. Witnesses described her snoring when the execution chamber microphone was cut off more than an hour into the attempt, while her attorneys say at least seven needles were used in her left arm, and that she showed ragged breathing, looked around, and complained of a burning sensation.
Pike, 50, was sentenced to death for the 1995 torture killing of 19-year-old Colleen Slemmer, a case that has followed Tennessee’s death penalty system for three decades. Her legal team has called the failed execution torture and is asking that her death sentence be commuted. State officials have not given a clear update on her prognosis.
The case is now raising bigger questions about lethal injection protocols, state accountability, and what constitutes cruel and unusual punishment under the Constitution. We want to know what our Gulf Coast neighbors think: should a failed execution change the sentence? Sound off in the comments or call into the show.
