Christa Pike, a convicted murderer on death row in Tennessee, is fighting for her life in hospital after authorities failed to execute her by lethal injection. The botched attempt on Wednesday has left onlookers "haunted" by what they witnessed.
Pike, 50, was sentenced to death for the 1995 killing of Colleen Slemmer. She was unsuccessfully executed after neither the initial nor backup dose of pentobarbital killed her. Emergency services rushed to the scene following the failed attempt.
Lawyer confirms she is alive
Lawyer Randy Spivey said on Thursday: "We don't have a sense of her prognosis or much update on her health at the moment." He added: "But we do know that she is alive right now."
Onlookers say Pike was snoring when the execution chamber's microphone was cut off more than an hour into the attempt. According to attorneys, at least seven needles were used in her left arm alone.
Witnesses describe 'torture'
Those who watched the attempt say Pike gasped for air, looked around, and complained of a burning sensation. Her lawyers claim the botched execution amounted to "torture" and have called for her death sentence to be commuted.
Spivey said: "I'm haunted by last night. What I saw last night is not something that should ever, ever happen again." Attorneys revealed that what occurred should "never happen again" as they witnessed the scene in the chamber.
Case background
Before the execution went wrong, Pike's case had already been the subject of a high-profile legal battle, with it being delayed just hours before. Slemmer was killed at 19 years old after being lured into an isolated area on the University of Tennessee agricultural campus.
Pike was convicted alongside her boyfriend in 1996. The court heard that a pentagram was carved into Slemmer's chest and that Pike showed companions a bit of her skull as a souvenir.
Slemmer's mother, May Martinez, who travelled to Tennessee to watch the execution, told NBC News the attempt "was a mess".
Medical concerns
Dr Joel Zivot, a professor at the Emory University School of Medicine, explained to the BBC that Pike probably never achieved a sufficient blood level of pentobarbital to cause her breath to stop or heart failure. He added: "It's very possible that as a consequence of the delay of the beginning of resuscitation she will have a brain injury."
