Christa Pike survives failed Tennessee execution, lawyers seek evidence

Christa Pike, 50, has regained consciousness and is able to speak after surviving Tennessee's failed attempt to execute her by lethal injection last week, according to her lawyers. The case has drawn fresh scrutiny over how states carry out the death penalty, especially the use of lethal injection.

Pike's attorneys appeared in court in Nashville on Wednesday, seeking more information about what went wrong during the Sept. 30 execution attempt and asking for an order directing the Tennessee Department of Correction to preserve evidence linked to the case. Pike was sentenced to death for the 1995 beating and stabbing death of her classmate, Colleen Slemmer.

The Death Penalty Information Centre said Pike is the only person known to have survived after receiving lethal injection drugs during an execution. Her lawyers said, "Against all odds, Christa Pike is conscious, speaking and continues to receive critical medical care." They added that her prognosis remains unclear and that, at a minimum, she faces a lengthy recovery.

According to her attorneys, Pike's arms were burned and blistered after executioners tried to give her two lethal doses of pentobarbital. They also said she is handcuffed to her hospital bed.

In court, Pike's lawyers sought an order requiring the prison system to preserve evidence from the attempted execution, including drug lot numbers, needles, execution logs and other records. Early arguments centred on whether the matter should be heard in a Nashville Chancery Court or by the Tennessee Supreme Court.

Lawyers from the Tennessee attorney general's office said in a Tuesday court filing that such an order was not needed because the prison system is "obliged to maintain this evidence in other cases and must assure it is preserved". They also said state officials had taken "the necessary steps to obtain medical care for Pike and ascertain what occurred".

Republican Governor Bill Lee described what happened as "deeply disturbing" and ordered a "comprehensive, third-party review to determine exactly what occurred". He also postponed the state's only other execution scheduled for this year. The state's prison chief resigned after the failed execution.

Medical and lethal injection experts have focused on the possibility that a problem with the IV line caused the drug to collect in Pike's tissue instead of entering her bloodstream. In their court filing, Pike's attorneys said that "apparently at no point did any member of the execution team realise that the IV lines were not correctly placed or that the veins had blown".

The execution attempt began at about 7.30 pm on Sept. 30, when Pike was given an opportunity to make a final statement. About five minutes later, she raised her head and said her arm was hurting. She later appeared to lose consciousness, but could still be heard breathing until media witnesses were escorted out of the witness room at 8.53 pm. An ambulance arrived at the prison at 9.14 pm to take her to hospital.

Dr Joel Zivot, a professor of anaesthesiology and surgery in Atlanta who advised Pike's legal team, said it could take weeks or months before doctors know what her recovery may look like, and whether her competency could be restored so that the state can again try to execute her. For now, Pike remains in critical medical care as court proceedings continue over the failed execution and the evidence linked to it.

With PTI Inputs

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