Tennessee death row inmate Christa Pike was still breathing and snoring after receiving two doses of lethal-injection drugs at Riverbend Maximum Security Institution in Nashville on Wednesday night. Pike, now 50, was sentenced to death in 1996 for the 1995 torture and murder of her classmate, 19-year-old Colleen Slemmer. Pike was 18 at the time of the murder.
In the video below, WKRN News 2 reporter Tori Gessner recounted what she witnessed during the botched execution attempt. She began by saying, “I’ve witnessed, I believe, five executions in Tennessee. Nothing about today was normal, typical at all.”
She heard Pike tell her spiritual adviser, “The vein in my arm feels like it’s about to burst open.”
Pike continued speaking as the procedure unfolded, Gessner said. “She’s talking throughout this, then starts breathing, moaning, snoring.” At that point, the curtains closed. They briefly reopened before closing again for the remainder of the attempt.
At 9 p.m., witnesses were asked to leave. Shortly afterward, ambulances arrived at the facility, which transported Pike to Vanderbilt University Medical Center for medical care.
BREAKING: “I’ve witnessed, I believe, 5 executions in Tennessee. Nothing about today was normal, typical at all.”
Shocking new details emerge from the failed attempt to execute Christa Pike, the 50-year-old inmate who has spent nearly 30 years on Tennessee’s death row.
At a… pic.twitter.com/gDofxP1Lz5
— Fox News (@FoxNews) October 1, 2026
Attorneys from the Tennessee Office of the Post-Conviction Defender currently represent Pike. According to two emergency court filings they submitted after the execution attempt, Pike remained conscious after receiving two syringes of pentobarbital. She “still had a heartbeat and was snoring.” One witness described the sound as if Pike was “almost choking. She was clearly still alive. She was clearly still breathing.”
BREAKING: Christa Pike is on her way to the hospital and receiving medical care.
“As a supplemental response, the respondent reports that the petitioner is being transported to a hospital and is receiving medical care.” pic.twitter.com/Z9xdo5R4cU
— Lauren Conlin (@conlin_lauren) October 1, 2026
Pike’s attorneys posted a statement late Wednesday night that read:
Tonight the State of Tennessee once again failed to carry out a lawful execution. We take no pleasure in being right, but the concerns raised by Ms. Pike proved to be true: difficult vein access, blown veins, degraded pentobarbital, no emergency medical care available when things inevitably go wrong, all under a protocol that remains veiled in secrecy.
Christa is being treated at a nearby hospital. We have not been informed as to her condition.
Statement from Christa Pike attorneys: https://t.co/LBR848QdkS pic.twitter.com/0VVCCCmd0Y
— Kelly Avellino (@KellyAvellino) October 1, 2026
According to The Tennessean, Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee, a Republican, announced a pause on all executions in the state for the rest of the year. His statement read (in part):
Carrying out a lawfully imposed sentence is among the State’s most serious responsibilities, and the people of Tennessee expect it to be done in a manner that is not only legal and constitutional, but is effective.
The Tennessean: Governor Bill Lee is calling off executions in Tennessee for the rest of 2026 after the state botched Christa Pike’s execution. pic.twitter.com/IYBNIMoMXc
— Politics & Poll Tracker 📡 (@PollTracker2024) October 1, 2026
Pike’s execution was originally scheduled for 10 a.m. However, an hour earlier, the Sixth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals granted a stay (in a 2-1 decision). The judges requested time to review Pike’s latest legal challenge.
The decision was immediately appealed to the Supreme Court. Hours later, in a 6-3 decision, the justices vacated the lower court’s stay, allowing the execution to go forward.
According to The Associated Press, the dispute centered on the state’s treatment of Pike’s allegations of childhood sexual abuse, which her lawyers argued had not been fully considered at the time of her sentencing.
Pike’s current condition remains unclear. Although I have not independently verified the claims in the X post below, the user’s explanation seems plausible.
Lastly, because I am tired of answering questions about Christa Pike:
Right now, the doctors are technically just keeping her alive to resolve the crisis rather than providing standard medical recovery.
At the emergency department of Vanderbilt University Medical Center, the…
— 𓂀 𝔾𝕣𝕖𝕖𝕟 𝔽𝕝𝕠𝕡 𓂀 (@GreenFlop1201) October 1, 2026
The New York Times reported the details of the gruesome murder:
In January 1995, Ms. Pike, her boyfriend at the time and a friend lured 19-year-old Colleen Slemmer into the woods on the University of Tennessee campus, taunting and torturing her. They beat her with asphalt rocks and slashed her with a box carver. Ms. Pike, who was 18 then, took a piece of Ms. Slemmer’s skull with her, which she showed to at least one other person.
Tadaryl Shipp, Ms. Pike’s boyfriend, testified to carving a pentagram into Ms. Slemmer’s chest, a gesture that sparked fears of Satan worship. Because Tennessee law applies the death penalty only to people 18 and older at the time of the crime, Mr. Shipp, at 17, was sentenced to life in prison. He was denied parole last year.
Regarding Pike’s allegations of childhood abuse and sexual assault, I have not independently verified the following account:
This is Christa Pike at 18 years old when she was sentenced to death. She begged for a hug from her mother before she died. She is now 50 and will be executed tonight for the heinous murder she committed with a boyfriend 32 years ago.
Christa’s mother drank heavily and used…
— Samsara 🎤🎵🎹 (@SamsaraSings) October 1, 2026
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