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Christa Pike execution fails: What next when a lethal injection is botched?

Al JazeeraEnglish

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Only woman on Tennessee 'death row' is in hospital after two injections failed to kill her.

Summary from Al Jazeera

By: Priyanka Shankar
Published: Oct 1, 2026, 10:52 AM UTC
Updated: Oct 2, 2026, 5:09 AM UTC

How other outlets describe it

Christa Pike’s attorneys said she was being treated at a hospital, but her condition is unknown. May Martinez, the mother of the murdered teenager Colleen Slemmer, called the failed execution “a mess.”

NBC NewsUnited States‘It was a mess’: Tennessee fails to execute woman after 2 lethal injections

Christa Pike's attorneys say she remained in a hospital where she was on a ventilator and unconscious after her failed execution in Tennessee.

WBAL-TVChrista Pike on ventilator and unconscious after failed execution, her lawyers say

As of Thursday night, Pike remained critically ill and is being treated at a hospital in Nashville, Tennessee.

BBCUnited KingdomUS murderer Christa Pike unconscious and on ventilator after failed execution, lawyers say

Topics in this story

#christa #pike #execution #fails #next

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Background

Context from Wikipedia on the organisations, people and places in this story.

Christa Pike

American murderer (born 1976)

Christa Gail Pike is an American convicted murderer. In 1995, when she was 18, Pike murdered her 19-year-old Job Corps classmate Colleen Slemmer in Knoxville, Tennessee. Pike and her boyfriend lured Slemmer into the woods where they tortured and killed her. In 1996, at the age of 20, Pike was sentenced to death, making her one of the youngest women to receive a death sentence in the United States during the post-Furman period. As of 2026, 18 women have been executed nationwide since 1976, and a woman has not been executed in Tennessee in over 200 years.

Tennessee

U.S. state

Tennessee, officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina to the east, Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi to the south, Arkansas to the southwest, and Missouri to the northwest. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. According to the United States Census Bureau, the state's estimated population as of 2024 is 7.22 million.

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12 other outlets reported this story in the last 3 days.

What to know about Christa Pike, her failed execution and what happens nextThe Washington PostUnited States8 hr. ago
Christa Pike is in critical condition after Tennessee’s failed execution attempt, her lawyers sayAP NewsUnited States38 hr. ago
‘It was a mess’: Tennessee fails to execute woman after 2 lethal injectionsNBC NewsUnited States45 hr. ago
Christa Pike on ventilator and unconscious after failed execution, her lawyers sayWBAL-TV17 hr. ago
US murderer Christa Pike unconscious and on ventilator after failed execution, lawyers sayBBCUnited Kingdom15 hr. ago
Christa Pike is on a ventilator and unconscious after surviving lethal injection. What happened?CNNUnited States26 hr. ago
Calls grow for US death penalty halt after ‘torturous’ botched execution of Christa Piketheguardian.comUnited Kingdom21 hr. ago
After Two Lethal Injection Attempts, Christa Pike Transported to Hospital Following Failed ExecutionNashville Banner2 days ago
Christa Gail Pike wasn't Tennessee's first failed execution this year. Here's what to knowPBS39 hr. ago
Tennessee cancels executions after Christa Pike survives botched lethal injectionCBS NewsUnited States35 hr. ago
Tennessee Botches Another Execution Despite Earlier Warnings from Attorneys; Christa Pike Was Alive Hours After Attempt BeganDeath Penalty Information Center45 hr. ago
Tennessee Fails to Execute Woman After 2 Doses of Lethal InjectionThe New York TimesUnited States3 days ago

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Language: English

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Christa Pike execution fails: What next when a lethal injection is botched?

About this story

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Christa Pike

Tennessee

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Christa Pike

Tennessee

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