Tennessee Execution Attempt of Christa Pike Fails

Christa Pike survived an execution attempt on September 30, 2026, at Riverbend Maximum Security Institution in Nashville after two doses of pentobarbital failed to stop her breathing and heartbeat. Strapped to a gurney shortly before 7:30 p.m. CDT, she was described in an emergency filing as unconscious, audibly snoring, and still with a heartbeat. District Judge Clifton L. Corker granted a halt during the procedure. Pike, 50, was taken by ambulance to an off-site medical facility. She was sentenced to death in 1996 for the 1995 murder of Colleen Slemmer, 19; Pike was 18 at the time.

The Sixth Circuit had stayed the execution about an hour before a scheduled 10 a.m. local time; the U.S. Supreme Court lifted that stay and the attempt proceeded. The Tennessee Department of Correction said, through Dorinda Carter, it followed every step of the state's lawful, established protocol. Pike's attorneys said she was being provided life-saving measures and that they had not been informed as to her condition; they had cited small veins, a blood-clotting disorder, PTSD, and other conditions as risks. Dr. Joel Zivot said it is very possible delayed resuscitation will cause a brain injury. Robin Maher called the case singular and unparalleled. Gov. Bill Lee ordered a third-party review, suspended remaining 2026 executions, and said the public expects executions to be legal, constitutional, and effective. Her death sentence remains in place.

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