A female death row inmate in the United States has been rushed to hospital after surviving two lethal injection doses during an execution attempt in Nashville. According to BBC, Christa Pike, 50, was undergoing capital punishment at the Riverbend Maximum Security Institution.
Prison staff administered two separate doses of the chemical pentobarbital. Witnesses reported that the curtain in the witness room was closed twice during the procedure. Media representatives were subsequently asked to leave the area.
Emergency Legal Motion Filed
Pike remained alive despite receiving both drug syringes. Her heart continued beating as her legal team filed an emergency motion to halt the execution.
In court filings, her attorneys stated: "Ms Pike has lost consciousness and still has a heartbeat and is audibly snoring." The Judge ruled that "medical personnel have begun to administer medical care as requested in the motion.”
He stated: "It's very possible that as a consequence of the delay of the beginning of resuscitation she will have a brain injury."
Dispute Over Protocol and Official Review
The Tennessee Department of Correction maintained that staff followed proper procedures. Department spokesperson Dorinda Carter stated: "The Tennessee Department of Correction followed every step of the State's lawful, established execution protocol approved by the Attorney General's Office."
She added: "The lethal injection chemical in the protocol has consistently been effective, and the protocol does not allow for additional procedures beyond what was carried out this evening. Christa Pike has been transported to an off-site medical facility."
Pike's legal team issued a contrasting statement: "Tonight the State of Tennessee once again failed to carry out a lawful execution." They claimed that issues regarding vein access, degraded drugs, and lack of emergency care were confirmed during the attempt.
Rare Capital Punishment Case Details
Pike was convicted and sentenced to death in 1996 for the 1995 murder of 19-year-old Colleen Slemmer. Pike was 18 at the time of the crime, which occurred at a job training camp for troubled teens.
The BBC reported that Pike is the only female prisoner on death row in Tennessee. She would have been the first woman executed in the state in more than 200 years.
Executions of female prisoners are rare in the United States. Since capital punishment resumed in 1976, only 18 women have been executed compared to 1,663 men. Women account for approximately 1% of all US executions.
