Christa Pike is still alive after Tennessee's failed lethal injection on September 30, 2026. Brian Scott and Jill Egan break down what went wrong inside the death chamber and America's long history of botched executions.
Tennessee attempted to execute Christa Pike for the 1995 murder of Colleen Slemmer. Officials spent more than an hour trying to establish IV access, then administered two doses of pentobarbital. She was transported to a hospital where she remained unconscious for days.
Her attorneys say she has now been discharged and returned to prison, with ongoing trauma and issues with concentration and memory. Governor Bill Lee has paused executions pending an independent review. Can Tennessee try again?
In this Daily Scaries True Crime Podcast episode, we cover the Christa Pike execution timeline hour by hour, why Tennessee uses single-drug pentobarbital instead of the three-drug cocktail, why that older protocol collapsed, and what happens legally after a failed execution - competency, double jeopardy, and cruel and unusual punishment.
We also cover historic failed executions including Willie Francis, Clayton Lockett, Romell Broom, Kenneth Smith, and the halted IV attempt for Tony Carruthers earlier this year.
New episodes of the Daily Scaries True Crime Podcast every Tuesday. Subscribe and turn on notifications so you never miss an episode. Tell us in the comments: did you know anyone had survived an execution attempt before this case?