Christa Pike: A Month After Failed Execution, Pain Persists

Christa Pike described a month of relentless physical and emotional suffering on Friday, one month after surviving a lethal injection in Tennessee.

Pike, 50, dictated her first public statement from the infirmary at the Debra K. Johnson Rehabilitation Center. She reported that her body, arms, hands, and throat continue to hurt. She also noted a difficulty in speaking that has persisted since the event.

"There hasn’t been a moment since that night when I haven’t been in pain. My body hurts. My arms hurt. My hands hurt. My throat hurts. I still struggle to speak. And the pain isn’t just physical. There is pain in my mind and in my soul," Pike said.

The failed execution occurred on September 30. Pike was scheduled to be executed for the 1995 stabbing death of 19-year-old Colleen Slemmer. At the time of the crime, Pike was 18. The state administered two doses of pentobarbital. Pike survived the procedure and was initially hospitalized before being transferred to the prison infirmary.

Pike attributed the failure to state "incompetence." She stated she is deeply hurt by the error and continues to consider the pain endured by Slemmer's family. "I’m deeply hurt by the incompetence that has put so many people in this terrible position," she said.

Tennessee Governor Bill Lee has ordered an investigation into the incident. He also postponed the state's other lethal injection scheduled for this year. Pike’s attorneys have asked the governor to commute her sentence to life imprisonment. Lee told reporters this week that he suspects her sentence will remain unchanged unless courts decide otherwise.

Pike said she is thankful to the medical workers who saved her life. She noted that finding hope remains difficult on some days. "I don’t know why I survived that night. I don’t know what comes next. Some days, finding hope is harder than others. For now, I am trying to heal, one day at a time. And I am holding on to the love and kindness of so many people who have reminded me that I am not alone," she said.