What happened during Tennessee's failed execution of Christa Pike?

The Big Picture

Tennessee Governor Bill Lee has halted executions in the state for the remainder of 2026 after Christa Pike survived two doses of pentobarbital during an attempted lethal injection Wednesday night.

Pike, 50, was taken to an off-site medical facility after the execution attempt, and her medical condition was unclear Thursday. Lee ordered what he described as a comprehensive, third-party review of the failed execution and the state's procedures.

The pause will affect the scheduled Dec. 3 execution of Gary Wayne Sutton, who has been on death row since 1996 for murder.

What Happened

Pike was sentenced to death in 1996 for the 1995 murder of 19-year-old Colleen Slemmer. Pike and her then-boyfriend, Tadaryl Shipp, were convicted in connection with Slemmer's killing. Shipp remains imprisoned after receiving a sentence other than death.

Pike's execution went ahead Wednesday after the U.S. Supreme Court allowed it to proceed following last-minute legal challenges. Tennessee officials administered two doses of pentobarbital, the sedative used in the state's lethal-injection protocol, but Pike remained alive.

Her attorneys said in court filings that she needed “life-saving measures” and argued that the execution was causing her “unnecessary agony” in violation of her right to be free from cruel and unusual punishment. Witnesses reported that Pike was still snoring as journalists were escorted from the execution chamber. The Guardian, citing witness accounts, reported that she was alive and snoring 40 minutes after the second dose.

The Tennessee Department of Correction said it followed “every step” of the state's lawful, established protocol, which it said had been approved by the attorney general's office. The department said the protocol did not allow additional procedures beyond those carried out that night.

Why It Matters

The episode is Tennessee's second unsuccessful execution attempt this year. In May, officials called off the planned execution of Tony Carruthers after they could not establish intravenous access. Carruthers received a one-year reprieve.

Tennessee's protocol calls for a second set of drug syringes if an inmate is not deceased after the first set, according to reporting by the Associated Press cited by the BBC and The Guardian. But the protocol does not clearly specify what should occur if an inmate remains alive after the second set.

Pike would have been the first woman executed in Tennessee in more than 200 years. Her survival has also raised renewed questions about a potential second execution attempt, though authorities had not said Thursday whether they would seek to execute her again.

What Each Side Is Saying

Lee said he was “highly disappointed” and called the failed attempt “a tragedy.” He said Tennesseans deserved answers and that the review would be thorough, while cautioning that it would take time. He had not publicly identified who would conduct the review.

Pike's legal team alleged that the problems included difficult vein access, blown veins, degraded pentobarbital and a lack of emergency medical care. The corrections department did not specifically address the allegation about degraded drugs.

The attorney general's office said it agreed with the decision to investigate, saying: “We need to know what happened.” May Martinez, Slemmer's mother, who traveled to Tennessee to witness the execution, told NBC News that the attempt was “a mess.”

Robin Maher, executive director of the Death Penalty Information Center, described the case to the Associated Press as “singular and unparalleled.” She said the organization knew of seven other cases in which people survived execution-related medical problems involving failure to access a vein, but none in which someone remained alive after receiving lethal-injection drugs.

What Happens Next

The state review will examine an execution attempt that the corrections department says followed existing procedure, but that nevertheless left Pike alive after both authorized doses were administered. Pike remains at an off-site medical facility, with no public update on her condition.

Lee's order means no Tennessee executions are expected before the end of the year. Any future effort to execute Pike would likely prompt further legal action, particularly over the failed attempt and the state's lethal-injection protocol.