Christa Pike is 'conscious' after failed execution as lawyers reveal new update on her condition

NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE: Christa Pike is conscious and speaking in a hospital after surviving Tennessee’s attempt to execute her last week, her lawyers said Tuesday, October 6.

Pike had been in critical condition after two doses of pentobarbital failed to end her life on September 30.

Christa Pike’s condition after failed execution

“Against all odds, Christa Pike is conscious, speaking, and continues to receive critical medical care,” her legal team said in a statement. “Her prognosis remains unclear but, at a minimum, we expect a long recovery.”

The 50-year-old remains hospitalized and is still handcuffed and shackled to her bed, according to her lawyers.

They said her arms suffered severe damage during the failed execution and described her recovery as “medically unprecedented.”

Dr Joel Zivot, a medical expert who has consulted with Pike’s legal team, said her latest progress was encouraging but warned that she remains at risk.

“She has recovered to a certain degree that she's able to be off a ventilator and able to speak, but in no way would I announce her free of further serious risk,” Zivot told the Associated Press. “There's still a lot of bad things that can happen here.”

Christa Pike suffers severe execution injuries

Pike was taken to the hospital after the execution was called off. Her lawyers said both arms were “swollen, burned, and blistered” when she arrived.

They believe the IV lines were placed incorrectly or that her veins burst, causing some or all of the medication to enter the tissue of her arms rather than her bloodstream.

Her legal team has asked a state court to preserve evidence from the execution attempt. Pike had also warned officials about problems with her veins before the execution.

Her lawyers said her thrombocytosis could increase clotting and pain and make her veins difficult to access.

In audio obtained by the New York Times, Pike discussed her fears about the lethal injection and referred to Tennessee’s failed execution attempt involving Tony Carruthers in May.

“Tony Carruthers lived out my worst nightmare,” Pike said. “I do not have good veins. And I don't want to go through that.” Attorney Stephen Ferrell said Pike was not trying to stop her execution but wanted the process to be carried out humanely.

“She was not seeking to delay her execution,” Ferrell said on October 1. “She was seeking to have that execution performed humanely and as quickly and as painlessly as possible.”

Tennessee faces scrutiny over failed execution

Pike was sentenced to death in 1996 for killing her classmate, Colleen Slemmer, in 1995. Her execution came after 30 years on death row and was called off after the process failed to kill her.

The failed attempt has now put Tennessee’s execution procedures under scrutiny.

Gov Bill Lee suspended another execution scheduled for this year and ordered a comprehensive third-party review.

Correction Commissioner Frank Strada also announced that he would step down at the end of October, saying it was “in the best interest of Tennesseans.” Pike’s lawyers said the resignation was justified but did not address what their client had endured.

“What happened to her reflects a systemic failure that goes far beyond any one person,” they said. Her attorneys are asking Lee to commute Pike’s death sentence to life in prison.

Ferrell said Pike had endured a “torturous attempt” at execution, while attorney Randy Spivey called the process “cruel” and “torturous.” Pike’s condition could also complicate any future execution attempt.

Under Supreme Court precedent, a person cannot be executed unless they have a “rational understanding” of why they are being put to death. Zivot has said it is “very possible” Pike suffered a brain injury because resuscitation was delayed.

As of now, Tennessee officials have not said whether they would attempt to execute Pike again. Her lawyers say the immediate focus remains on her recovery, which they expect to be long and uncertain.