{"id":31455,"date":"2026-10-11T05:08:50","date_gmt":"2026-10-11T09:08:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/worldjusticenews.com\/news\/?p=31455"},"modified":"2026-10-11T05:08:50","modified_gmt":"2026-10-11T09:08:50","slug":"us-murderer-christa-pike-discharged-from-hospital-10-days-after-failed-execution","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/worldjusticenews.com\/news\/2026\/10\/11\/us-murderer-christa-pike-discharged-from-hospital-10-days-after-failed-execution\/","title":{"rendered":"US murderer Christa Pike discharged from hospital 10 days after failed execution"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"ssrcss-vxwoax-ComponentWrapper e1aon0op1\" data-block=\"text\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-126h8e-Spacer e1aon0op0\">\n<div data-testid=\"rich-text\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-nqezkk-RichTextContainer e5tfeyi1\">\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\"><b>US death row inmate Christa Pike has been discharged from hospital following her botched execution at the end of last month, her lawyers have said.<\/b><\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">Pike, 50, has been sent back to the prison where she has spent the last 30 years and is continuing to receive medical care, according to a statement from her lawyers on Saturday.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">She survived two lethal injections of the drug pentobarbital on 30 September, which left her in a critical condition.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">Pike regained consciousness earlier this week and began speaking &#8211; stunning experts, medical staff and her lawyers.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">Her case is now in uncharted territory as she is thought to be the only person to have survived an execution attempt by lethal injection.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/news\/articles\/c6d949gq47x9o\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">I&#8217;ve seen nearly 500 executions &#8211; but never one like Christa Pike&#8217;s<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/news\/articles\/c6x2z2j8yjvgo\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">I interviewed Christa Pike 20 years ago &#8211; I can&#8217;t stop thinking about her<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/news\/articles\/ckge4eql4q7eo\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">What happened in Christa Pike&#8217;s failed US execution, and how did she survive?<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/news\/articles\/c60rln74yzvxo\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Christa Pike now walking after failed US execution, lawyer tells BBC<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/news\/articles\/c6dxw90kdp5yo\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Christa Pike has &#8216;profound&#8217; health turnaround after botched execution, lawyers say<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<div class=\"ssrcss-vxwoax-ComponentWrapper e1aon0op1\" data-block=\"text\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-126h8e-Spacer e1aon0op0\">\n<div data-testid=\"rich-text\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-nqezkk-RichTextContainer e5tfeyi1\">\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">Pike&#8217;s lawyers said in their statement that she was &#8220;grateful to the first responders and her medical team for their care in these extraordinary circumstances&#8221;.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">It is unclear what medical care Pike is receiving now that she is back in prison but her lawyers previously said she faced a &#8220;long road to recovery&#8221;.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">The Tennessee Department of Correction is yet to say why the execution did not go as planned, though it has defended the method it used.<\/p>\n<div class=\"ssrcss-vxwoax-ComponentWrapper e1aon0op1\" data-block=\"text\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-126h8e-Spacer e1aon0op0\">\n<div data-testid=\"rich-text\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-nqezkk-RichTextContainer e5tfeyi1\">\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">At a court hearing on Wednesday, Tennessee Assistant Attorney General Will Ayers told the judge he did not know whether the state intends to try to execute her again.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">The judge ordered the state to preserve all evidence related to the failed injections. That evidence could lay the groundwork for a future lawsuit against the state.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">Pike was 18 when she and her then-boyfriend, Tadaryl Shipp, beat, tortured and killed 19-year-old Colleen Slemmer, whom they had met at a job training camp for low-income young people.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">Shipp was spared the death penalty because he was not legally an adult when the crime was committed. He remains in prison.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">Pike was the first woman scheduled to be executed in the state of Tennessee in over 200 years.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">Her lawyers have spent decades appealing her case. In the days leading up to her scheduled execution, both the US Supreme Court and Tennessee Governor Bill Lee declined to block the execution.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">Since it failed, Pike&#8217;s lawyers have renewed their calls for her sentence to be commuted to life in prison without the possibility of parole.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"ssrcss-l7emlr-ComponentWrapper e1aon0op1\" data-block=\"image\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-126h8e-Spacer e1aon0op0\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-1uy5kw5-FullWidthWrapper ep2nwvo1\" data-testid=\"image\">\n<figure class=\"ssrcss-hc6arm-StyledFigure e34k3c22\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-ab5fd8-StyledFigureContainer e34k3c21\"><span class=\"ssrcss-1nk2cm7-Placeholder etlorgc0\"><picture><source srcset=\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/240\/cpsprodpb\/6994\/live\/eb8ff3b0-c2f2-11f1-bc2e-018d645d8d21.png.webp 240w, https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/320\/cpsprodpb\/6994\/live\/eb8ff3b0-c2f2-11f1-bc2e-018d645d8d21.png.webp 320w, https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/480\/cpsprodpb\/6994\/live\/eb8ff3b0-c2f2-11f1-bc2e-018d645d8d21.png.webp 480w, https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/624\/cpsprodpb\/6994\/live\/eb8ff3b0-c2f2-11f1-bc2e-018d645d8d21.png.webp 624w, https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/800\/cpsprodpb\/6994\/live\/eb8ff3b0-c2f2-11f1-bc2e-018d645d8d21.png.webp 800w\" type=\"image\/webp\" \/><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"ssrcss-egie1y-Image edrdn950\" src=\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/926\/cpsprodpb\/6994\/live\/eb8ff3b0-c2f2-11f1-bc2e-018d645d8d21.png\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/240\/cpsprodpb\/6994\/live\/eb8ff3b0-c2f2-11f1-bc2e-018d645d8d21.png 240w, https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/320\/cpsprodpb\/6994\/live\/eb8ff3b0-c2f2-11f1-bc2e-018d645d8d21.png 320w, https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/480\/cpsprodpb\/6994\/live\/eb8ff3b0-c2f2-11f1-bc2e-018d645d8d21.png 480w, https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/624\/cpsprodpb\/6994\/live\/eb8ff3b0-c2f2-11f1-bc2e-018d645d8d21.png 624w, https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/800\/cpsprodpb\/6994\/live\/eb8ff3b0-c2f2-11f1-bc2e-018d645d8d21.png 800w\" alt=\"File image of Colleen Slemmer\" width=\"926\" height=\"913\" \/><\/picture><\/span>Colleen Slemmer was tortured and brutally killed by Pike and Shipp (<span class=\"ssrcss-tzgxt7-StyledFigureCopyright e34k3c20\" role=\"text\"><span class=\"visually-hidden ssrcss-i2z2ig-VisuallyHidden e16en2lz0\">Image: <\/span>Family handout)<\/span><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"ssrcss-vxwoax-ComponentWrapper e1aon0op1\" data-block=\"text\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-126h8e-Spacer e1aon0op0\">\n<div data-testid=\"rich-text\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-nqezkk-RichTextContainer e5tfeyi1\">\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">Pike lost consciousness and was taken to a local hospital following her botched execution. Her legal team believed for days that she was brain dead and expected her to be taken off life support at any moment.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">Pike eventually woke up and began talking again on Tuesday &#8211; her lawyer Randy Spivey said her first words were &#8220;Where am I?&#8221; and &#8220;Who are you?&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">At a press conference on Wednesday, her lawyers said she was shackled to the bed and suffering from pneumonia and significant swelling on her arms, while also being unable to swallow.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">&#8220;We don&#8217;t know the toll all of this will take&#8221; Spivey said of her mental health, adding that Pike felt &#8220;angry and confused&#8221;.<\/p>\n<p>Source: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/news\/articles\/cmlyle97pqd7o\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">bbc.co.uk<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<div class=\"mh-excerpt\">US death row inmate Christa Pike has been discharged from hospital following her botched execution at the end of last month, her lawyers have said. Pike, 50, has been sent back to the prison where <a class=\"mh-excerpt-more\" href=\"https:\/\/worldjusticenews.com\/news\/2026\/10\/11\/us-murderer-christa-pike-discharged-from-hospital-10-days-after-failed-execution\/\" title=\"US murderer Christa Pike discharged from hospital 10 days after failed execution\">[&#8230;]<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":31456,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"pmpro_default_level":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[109,2,3],"tags":[13085,9,3205,116,10671,3060,11517],"class_list":["post-31455","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-headline","category-news","category-usa","tag-christa-pike","tag-execution","tag-executions","tag-lethal-injection","tag-pentobarbital","tag-tennessee","tag-tennessee-department-of-correction","pmpro-has-access"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/worldjusticenews.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31455","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/worldjusticenews.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/worldjusticenews.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worldjusticenews.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worldjusticenews.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=31455"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/worldjusticenews.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31455\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":31457,"href":"https:\/\/worldjusticenews.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31455\/revisions\/31457"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worldjusticenews.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/31456"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/worldjusticenews.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=31455"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worldjusticenews.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=31455"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worldjusticenews.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=31455"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}