Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee has halted the state’s remaining execution for 2026 and ordered an independent review after officials failed to execute Christa Gail Pike despite administering two doses of pentobarbital.
Pike, 50, remained alive after Wednesday night’s lethal injection attempt and was transported by ambulance from Riverbend Maximum Security Institution to a hospital. Her attorneys said she was still breathing and loudly snoring after the second dose.
Governor Orders Third-Party Review
Lee called the failed execution “deeply disturbing” and said he had ordered a comprehensive third-party review to determine exactly what happened.
He also said Tennessee’s only remaining scheduled execution for this year will not take place. Gary Wayne Sutton had been scheduled for execution on December 3.
Lee said carrying out a death sentence is one of the state’s most serious responsibilities and must be done legally, constitutionally and effectively.
Two Doses Failed to End Pike’s Life
The Tennessee Department of Correction says it followed the state’s approved execution protocol.
That protocol provides for a second set of lethal-drug syringes if the prisoner remains alive after the first dose. However, it does not specify what officials should do if the person remains alive after the second set.
Pike received both sets of pentobarbital but survived.
Robin Maher, executive director of the Death Penalty Information Center, described the case as “singular and unparalleled,” saying previous failed executions generally involved problems establishing an intravenous line rather than a prisoner surviving after the lethal drugs were actually administered.
Second Failed Tennessee Execution This Year
The Pike case is the second failed execution attempt in Tennessee in 2026.
In May, officials were unable to execute Tony Carruthers after encountering problems establishing the required backup IV line. That procedure was stopped before the lethal drugs were administered.
Pike’s case is substantially different because the execution drugs were administered and she remained alive.
Pike Was Taken to a Hospital
Pike’s attorneys filed emergency legal motions Wednesday night arguing that continuing the process would subject her to unnecessary suffering and potentially violate the constitutional prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment.
She was later taken from the prison by ambulance and admitted to a hospital. As of the latest reports, detailed information about her medical condition had not been released publicly.
Execution Had Already Been Halted Once That Day
Wednesday’s events followed an extraordinary series of last-minute court decisions.
A federal appeals court initially stopped Pike’s scheduled execution shortly before it was due to begin. Tennessee then appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, which lifted the stay and allowed the state to proceed.
Hours later, the execution itself failed.
Pike was sentenced to death for the 1995 murder of 19-year-old Colleen Slemmer. She was 18 at the time of the crime and has spent approximately three decades on death row.
Had the execution been completed, Pike would have become the first woman executed by Tennessee in more than 200 years.
The governor’s decision now puts Tennessee’s execution system under formal review and leaves unresolved whether the state will eventually seek another execution date for Pike.
Sources: Associated Press, Tennessee Governor’s Office, Tennessee Department of Correction, Tennessee Lookout
By NJ RADAR Team