Christa Pike Still Alive After 2 Lethal Injections in Tennessee, Lawyer Says in Fresh Motion To Halt Execution

Christa Gail Pike, the only woman on Tennessee's death row, is still alive after being administered a lethal injection, according to Luke Ihnen, an assistant federal defender on her defence team. Ihnen confirmed that Pike had received two syringes of a lethal drug and said the team is filing a motion to stay the execution, the latest twist in a day of back-and-forth over the "Jobs Corps Murder" convict's fate. The state has not yet said what its next steps will be, and the development adds to questions over Tennessee's execution procedure, which has already been under scrutiny after botched attempts.

The same doctor, Mark Fowler, who was involved in the abandoned execution of Tony Carruthers also oversaw Pike's attempted execution.

How The Day Unfolded

Pike was originally set to be executed at 11 a.m. on Wednesday. Less than an hour before that, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals granted a stay pausing the execution, reported WVLT. The state then asked the US Supreme Court to step in, and the highest court in the country lifted the stay just before 7 p.m., setting the execution in motion. Christa Pike Execution Stayed by Court Less Than 2 Hours Before Lethal Injection.

Vein Condition Argued In August Hearing

Pike's defence team had argued during a three-day hearing in August that she has a vein condition that would make it difficult to find a vein to administer the lethal drug.

Tennessee's Troubled Execution Record

The state's death penalty procedure has faced scrutiny after botched executions prompted a pause from Gov. Bill Lee. The attempted execution of Tony Carruthers was abandoned in May after medical staff failed to establish IV access, a process that took over an hour. In August, however, Tennessee carried out the execution of Anthony Darrell Hines at the Riverbend Maximum Security Institution in Nashville, for the 1985 murder of Catherine Jean Jackson Jenkins. Christa Pike Execution: US Supreme Court Clears Way for Tennessee To Put First Woman to Death in 200 Years.

The 'Jobs Corps Murder' Case

Pike was convicted in 1996 over the 1995 killing of 19-year-old Colleen Slemmer. The case came to be known as the "Jobs Corps Murder" because both Pike and Slemmer were members of the Jobs Corps at the time. Prosecutors and testimony have said Pike conspired with two others, 17-year-old Tadaryl Shipp and 18-year-old Shadolla Peterson, to kill Slemmer over relationship issues. It emerged during the case that a pentacle was carved into Slemmer's chest and a piece of her skull was taken as a souvenir.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Oct 01, 2026 08:17 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).