Christa Pike, USA News (Tennessee): Christa Pike, who survived an execution by lethal injection in the US, has issued a statement for the first time since the botched attempts to end her life. The convicted murderer was supposed to be put to death in Tennessee on September 30, but after two failed attempts, she remains alive. Pike, 50, was given two doses of pentobarbital, a drug used regularly by the US state in executions, and now lives in constant physical and mental pain.
In a statement dictated to her legal team, Pike described walking into the execution chamber at Riverbend men’s prison prepared to die. She noted that she had made her peace and expressed gratitude to supporters before the procedure began. “Several days later I woke up alone in a hospital confused and in pain. There hasn’t been a moment since that night when I haven’t been in pain. My body hurts. My arms hurt. My hands hurt. My throat hurts. I still struggle to speak. And the pain isn’t just physical. There is pain in my mind and in my soul,” Pike stated.
She added that she had not contemplated life beyond that night and expressed hurt over the incompetence that placed individuals in this position, while continuing to think about her victim’s family and the loss they endured. Pike mentioned she is recovering and getting stronger, though healing differs from being okay. Since the incident, she has been largely isolated in the prison’s medical ward, noting that the condition echoes aspects of her 28 years spent in solitary confinement.
Pike expressed gratitude for the love and support received from around the world, as well as the first responders, doctors, nurses, and hospital staff who cared for her with compassion and dignity. Concluding her statement, she shared that she does not know why she survived or what comes next, taking it one day at a time.
Legal Background and Victim’s Family Response
Pike’s case enters uncharted legal territory, as she is believed to be the only person to have survived an attempted execution by lethal injection. The family of her victim, 19-year-old Colleen Slemmer, had long advocated for her execution. Ms. Slemmer’s mother, May Martinez, described the botched procedure and resulting legal wrangling as a mess, stating she broke down in tears upon learning of Pike’s survival and that the state owed her a big apology.
Pike was 18 and her boyfriend, Tadaryl Shipp, was 17 when they tortured and killed Slemmer in 1995 after meeting her at a job training camp. Court documents indicated Pike feared Slemmer had a romantic interest in Shipp. Pike’s attorneys noted she was diagnosed with bipolar and post-traumatic stress disorders. Because Shipp was a minor at the time, he did not receive the death penalty and remains imprisoned.
