Christa Pike 'conscious and speaking' after botched execution according to her lawyers
Christa Pike is conscious and speaking after surviving an execution attempt, her lawyers have said.
A new statement has been the first indication that Pike's condition has improved since an ambulance took her from a Nashville prison last Wednesday (30 September) following her botched execution.
She survived two doses of pentobarbital as Tennessee officials attempted to put her to death.
In the statement, her legal team said: "Against all odds, Christa Pike is conscious, speaking, and continues to receive critical medical care.
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"Despite the severe damage she endured to her arms, she is still handcuffed and shackled to the bed. Her recovery is medically unprecedented. Her prognosis remains unclear but, at a minimum, we expect a long recovery."
Her lawyers said they are grateful for the first responders and the medical team at the hospital 'who treated Christa like a human and have provided exceptional care to her'.
They added: "We also want to thank thousands from all over the world who sent messages offering prayers and support for Christa."
'My arm feels like it's about to burst open'
Pike, 50, was set to become the first woman put to death in the state of Tennessee for around 200 years for the murder of Colleen Slemmer in 1995.
As planned last week, despite a brief hour delay, Pike was taken into the death chamber and shared what she thought would be her final words. However, witnesses said it soon became clear that something had gone wrong.
Members of the press who were witness to the execution attempt said that shortly after the first dose was administered, Pike said: “My arm feels like it’s about to burst open.”
She then appeared to sense something has gone wrong, and asked: “Does this happen like that?”
Her legal team confirmed that Pike had been rushed into hospital where she was receiving ‘life-saving’ care - though they later said that she was on life-support and were unsure if she would recover.
Will Christa Pike's execution be rescheduled?
While it's not currently known if Pike will be executed later down the line, Dr Paul A Lucas, an associate professor at East Carolina University, has said the third-party review into what went wrong that has been ordered by Tennessee Governor Bill Lee will likely determine 'what happens next'.
"If the investigation identifies problems with how the protocol was implemented the state may focus on correcting those procedures," he said to ABC News.
"If officials followed the protocol as written and the execution nevertheless failed, that could raise more fundamental questions about the protocol itself.
"Either way, I would expect the circumstances surrounding Ms Pike's failed execution to receive significant scrutiny before Tennessee resumes executions."
Tennessee Department of Correction speaks out
In a statement after the execution attempt, the Tennessee Department of Correction said it had followed ‘every step’ of the standard protocol.
"The Tennessee Department of Correction followed every step of the state’s lawful, established execution protocol approved by the Attorney General’s Office," the statement said.
"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."
Tennessee announced it was halting all executions until an investigation into the botched execution was carried out. It also led to the resignation of Tennessee Department of Correction Commissioner Frank Strada.
Strada will leave his role this month after being the residing commissioner of Tennessee's Department of Correction for the past three years, and also in the role when the May execution of Tony Carruthers, was called off due to problems finding a vein for his lethal injection.
Why was Christa Pike given the death penalty?
Pike was sent to death row for the murder of 19-year-old Colleen Slemmer in 1995.
On 12 January 1995, an 18-year-old Pike, her then-boyfriend Tadaryl Shipp, and friend Shadolla Peterson lured Slemmer to a secluded woodland in Knoxville.
According to court documents, Pike and Shipp then brutally attacked Slemmer, while Peterson kept watch.
The beating lasted around 30 minutes, and saw them carve a pentagram into Slemmer’s chest, before Pike then killed the 19-year-old by delivering a fatal blow to the head, court documents claimed.
During her incarceration, Pike’s legal team argued that she should not have been given the death penalty due to her age when committing the crime and her troubled background.
Assistant Federal Defender Stephen Ferrell said she was abused as a child and was later diagnosed with bipolar disorder and post traumatic stress disorder.
In her clemency petition, Pike wrote: “I was a mentally ill 18-year-old kid. It took me numerous years to even realise the gravity of what I’d done. Even more to accept how many lives I affected. I took the life of someone’s child, sister, friend. It sickens me now to think I had the ability to commit such a crime.”
Topics: US News
Claire Reid