Christa Pike, a Death Row inmate who survived a botched lethal injection, could be strapped into the electric chair after Tennessee's newly elected governor vowed to resume executions. The incoming governor, Marsha Blackburn, stated that Pike "should have been executed long ago" and demanded a return to the electric chair.
Botched Execution and Survival
Pike survived an execution attempt on September 30 when prison staff failed to kill her with two doses of the lethal sedative pentobarbital. The procedure descended into chaos as executioners struggled for minutes to find a vein, leaving the 50-year-old loudly snoring and gasping for breath on the gurney before medics rushed her to intensive care.
She spent days unconscious on a ventilator, with attorneys fearing she was brain dead, before waking and speaking on October 6. Her lawyers reported that the ordeal left her with mangled arms, pneumonia, a blood clot, and mobility issues.
Pike's Statement and Prior Warnings
Breaking her silence through her legal team, Pike said: "There hasn't been a moment since that night when I haven't been in pain." She added that her limbs and throat remain in agony and that she is barely able to talk.
Court filings, first uncovered by People magazine, revealed that Pike's defence team had warned nine months earlier that she likely suffered from a rare blood cancer called myeloproliferative disorder. Lawyers had cautioned that the condition caused high platelet levels and compromised veins, putting her at severe risk of pulmonary edema if needles were forced into her arms.
New Governor's Stance
Blackburn, a Republican who defeated anti-capital punishment Democrat Jerri Green to become Tennessee's first female governor, is demanding an immediate return to the electric chair. Fuming over Pike's survival, Blackburn said: "This situation is tragic. Christa Pike should have been executed long ago." She added: "Now, this botched process is extending the pain for the family of Colleen Slemmer."
The incoming governor called for a full inquiry and insisted officials "bring back the electric chair and deliver justice for these victims swiftly." She also told the Associated Press that the disaster "should not be grounds to halt carrying out the death penalty."
Background of the Case
Pike was condemned to death for torturing and killing 19-year-old Colleen Slemmer in a woodland attack near the University of Tennessee campus in 1995, when Pike was 18. She was set to be the state's first executed female in more than 200 years.
Outgoing Governor Bill Lee has imposed a freeze on all capital punishment for the rest of the year but refused to commute Pike's sentence. Asked whether the state would make a second attempt on her life, Lee said: "I suspect her sentence will be the same as before unless determined otherwise by the courts."
