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A lethal injection gone wrong: Christa Pike survives death row execution

Pike's attorneys speak after botched execution.
Christa Pike's attorneys Randy Spivey, center, and Luke Ihnen, right, hold a news conference after a court hearing Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2026, in Nashville, Tenn., where a judge granted their request for the Tennessee Department of Corrections to preserve all evidence related to the failed execution of Christa Pike. (AP Photo/George Walker IV, Pool)
By Jessy Siegmann, Omar Mejia, and Zora Zeng

A botched execution in Tennessee is raising questions about the future of the lethal injection. Christa Pike has spent almost 30 years on death row after being convicted for torturing and murdering her classmate, Colleen Slemmer, in 1996. Pike was hospitalized after surviving the injection last Wednesday and now remains in critical condition.

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