Christa Pike latest: Killer’s lawyers condemn ‘chemical torture’ after seven needles used in botched execution

TN halts executions after botched lethal injection of Christa PikeDeath row inmate Christa Pike was alive Thursday and receiving "life-saving medical care" following a botched execution attempt in a Tennessee jail, her lawyer said.Pike, 50, is in critical condition, her lawyer said Thursday. She was due to be the first woman put to death in the state in 206 years, after a court overturned a late stay of execution. Experts say her survival is unprecedented.Officials administered pentobarbital to Pike twice at Riverbend Maximum Security Institution in Nashville around 8 p.m. local time, but she was later heard snoring.The execution team went through at least seven needles while trying to find a vein in Pike’s arms to administer the lethal dose of the injection for her execution, her lawyer Randy Spivey said.Her legal team has called the botched execution "chemical torture”, while Amnesty USA and the United Nations commissioner on human rights called it “cruel”.He said one of the needles that was pulled out from her arm after an unsuccessful attempt was bent.Pike was being executed for the 1995 murder of Colleen Slemmer, a classmate she tortured and killed when she was 18. Trump says executing death row inmates 'shouldn't be difficult' on Christa Pike caseDonald Trump has responded to the botched execution of Christa Pike, calling it an “interesting situation”.Asked by reporters whether he would push for changes to capital punishment following the failed execution in Tennessee, the US president said the matter was for state authorities.“Well, that was an interesting situation, but you’re going to have to speak to Tennessee about it, whether or not they’re going to go forward,” Mr Trump said.He turned to his aides, asking: “You know what that was about. That was an execution where the medication didn’t exactly work.”Mr Trump then turned to Republican congressman Ronny Jackson, a physician who previously served as his White House doctor, and asked: “How does that happen? He’s a great doctor.”Mr Jackson replied: “I don’t know how that happens. It should be easy to do.”“It shouldn’t be very difficult,” Mr Trump added.Shweta Sharma2 October 2026 07:11Tennessee has faced previous problems with executionsIt is not the first time Tennessee governor Bill Lee has ordered an investigation into the state’s use of capital punishment.An independent review four years ago found that Tennessee had failed to follow its own execution protocols and properly test lethal injection drugs. The investigation followed an execution that was halted in April 2022 over the mishandling of drugs.In May, Tennessee also stopped the execution of Tony Carruthers after medical workers were unable to establish a second IV line despite attempts using his arm, hand and foot, as well as a central line.Lee subsequently ordered officials to wait at least a year before attempting to execute Carruthers again.Shweta Sharma2 October 2026 07:00I met Christa Pike on death row. As she survives her execution – what now?Shweta Sharma2 October 2026 06:39At least seven needles used as staff struggled to find vein for executionThe execution team went through at least seven needles while trying to find a vein in Christa Pike’s arms to administer the lethal dose of the injection for her execution, her lawyers said. Her lawyer Randy Spivey said one of the needles that was pulled out from her arm after an unsuccessful attempt was bent. Medical experts said there were signs that the two intravenous catheters may have allowed the drug to leak into tissue around the insertion sites instead of delivering it directly into Pike’s bloodstream.They said this could have been caused by the placement of the catheters, the fragility of Pike’s veins or another factor. Her lawyers said doctors had previously struggled to find veins during blood draws and that Pike has a blood disorder that makes the problem worse.During the execution attempt, her lawyers said she even tried to help the staff place the two IV lines.“She over and over again said, ‘Please, try up on my shoulder higher, please try here, please try here,’” Spivey said. Shweta Sharma2 October 2026 06:00Timeline of Pike's botched execution7.27pm: Christa Pike was strapped to a gurney with an IV in her arm as her scheduled execution began. She said: “I’m ready to be free. This is a happy day.”7.37pm: Pike remained conscious and complained that her arm was hurting, asking a prison official whether it was supposed to feel that way.7.46pm: Officials closed the curtain to the execution chamber before reopening it three minutes later, with Pike still alive.7.56pm: Pike appeared to lose consciousness and began making sounds resembling snoring, but continued breathing and briefly lifted her head.8.06pm: Officials closed the curtain again, but witnesses continued to hear Pike breathing from behind it.8.22pm: Pike’s attorney Randy Spivey said he demanded that the execution be halted and that she receive life-saving medical care.8.50pm: Spivey said he received confirmation that an ambulance was on its way to the prison.8.53pm: Witnesses were ordered to leave the execution area and members of the media were escorted out.9.14pm: Ambulances and fire trucks arrived outside the prison. Pike was later taken to hospital after surviving two doses of pentobarbital.Shweta Sharma2 October 2026 05:30Christa Pike on 'life-saving medical care' in hospitalChrista Pike was critically ill and receiving "life-saving medical care" in a Nashville hospital on Thursday hours after she survived two attempts by Tennessee to ​execute her with lethal injections, her lawyers said "Christa is alive right now," Randall Spivey, one of Pike's lawyers who was a witness at the execution attempt, told reporters on Thursday afternoon. "We don't have a sense of her prognosis or much update on her health ​at the moment, but we do know that she is alive right now."Her lawyers repeated their calls for Pike's sentence to be commuted to life in prison after enduring what ​they called "chemical torture." Tennessee has suspended all executions for the rest of the year while it investigates the incident. Shweta Sharma2 October 2026 05:00What to know about Christa Pike's co-defendantTadaryl Shipp remains in prison for his role in the 1995 murder of Colleen Slemmer. Shipp, who was 17 at the time of the crime, is serving a life sentence at the Northwest Correctional Complex in Tiptonville, Tennessee. Because he was a juvenile when the murder occurred, he was legally ineligible for the death penalty.The Tennessee Board of Parole denied Shipp parole in October 2025 due to the severity of the offense. Having been incarcerated since January 1995, his next parole review is scheduled for October 2031.Jasmine Fernández2 October 2026 04:30Has an inmate ever survived a state execution attempt before?Yes, but it is extremely rare. Only a handful of death row inmates in U.S. history have survived an attempted execution, typically when corrections teams called off the procedure after failing to secure a usable vein for lethal injection.Jasmine Fernández2 October 2026 04:00How lethal injection works in TennesseeTennessee relies on a single-drug protocol using pentobarbital, a potent barbiturate designed to depress the central nervous system. Delivered intravenously, a high dose is intended to quickly induce unconsciousness, halt breathing and stop the heart.The method depends entirely on flawless IV access and proper drug potency. Without a correct dose flowing directly into the bloodstream, the sedative can fail to stop breathing, leaving an inmate conscious or in prolonged distress.Jasmine Fernández2 October 2026 02:30