TRUE CRIME NEWSChrista Pike Discharged From the Hospital After Botched Execution, Lawyer Says
Christa Pike survived two doses of the lethal injection drug pentobarbital.
Oct. 10 2026, Published 2:56 p.m. ET
Christa Pike has been released from the hospital and is back in prison following her botched execution.
The 50-year-old survived two doses of the lethal injection drug pentobarbital in Tennessee on September 30, and was brought to a medical center after the incident.
Christa Pike's Attempted Execution Took Place on September 30
Christa Pike was discharged from the hospital on October 10.
“Christa Pike was discharged from a local hospital and is now at Debra K. Johnson Rehabilitation Center, where she has been housed for more than 30 years,” her attorneys, Stephen Ferrell, Luke Ihnen, Randy Spivey and Kelly Gleason, said in a statement on Saturday, October 10.
“She is grateful to the first responders and her medical team for their care in these extraordinary circumstances,” they continued.
Christa Pike Was Initially Thought to Be Brain Dead
Christa Pike was convicted for the January 1995 murder of 19-year-old Colleen Slemmer.
“She is continuing to receive medical care at the prison, and we will continue to track her recovery," Pike's legal team went on.
The inmate was sentenced to death for the January 1995 murder of 19-year-old Colleen Slemmer. Pike fatally tortured, beat and stabbed the teen alongside her boyfriend, Tadaryl Shipp.
Pike was unconscious and put on a ventilator after the execution attempt, with her lawyers initially believing she was brain dead on October 5.
Want OK! each day? Sign up here!
Christa Pike Still Has a 'Long Road to Recovery'
Christa Pike regained consciousness several days after the botched execution.
However, she regained consciousness the following day and began speaking once she woke up. She reportedly asked: “Where am I and who are you?” when she awakened, and even began walking.
Spivey explained in a statement earlier this week that he does not “have an explanation for what happened between Monday night and Tuesday morning,” but stated Pike “has a long road to recovery.”
“I don’t want to speculate too much, but from our understanding the first thing she said when she woke up was, ‘Where am I, and who are you?” Spivey said.
Pike had a blood clot in her arm, and previously suffered from pneumonia while in the hospital.
Christa Pike's Lawyers Asked the Tennessee Governor to Commute Her Sentence
Christa Pike's legal team asked Tennessee governor Bill Lee to commute her death sentence to life in prison.
Tennessee governor Bill Lee ordered a review of Pike's case, and also canceled any remaining executions scheduled for 2026 in the state.
Pike’s lawyers then implored Lee to commute her death sentence to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
“Christa is dealing with the profound psychological trauma of having survived a failed execution, including the terror, pain and uncertainty of believing she was about to die,” her legal team said on October 8.
“We cannot yet know the full emotional and psychological toll of that experience or how long it will take her to begin to heal," they said.
