Christa Pike, a Tennessee death row inmate, has released her first public statement after surviving a botched lethal injection on September 30. Despite receiving two doses of the sedative pentobarbital, Pike survived the attempt. She was originally sentenced to death for the 1995 torture and stabbing of her classmate, Colleen Slemmer, when Pike was 18.
In a statement released through her legal team, Pike blamed incompetence for the failed execution. She described being in constant physical and mental anguish, stating that her arms, hands, and throat hurt and that she still struggles to speak. Pike claimed that there has not been a moment since the injection when she has not been in pain, noting that the pain exists in her mind and soul.
Pike is currently recovering in isolation at the infirmary of the Debra K. Johnson Rehabilitation Center, where she has been held for decades. While she stated she went into the execution chamber prepared to die in peace, she expressed gratitude to those who saved her and urged compassion for the victim's family.
The state governor has ordered an investigation into the failed execution. Meanwhile, Pike's lawyers are seeking to have her death sentence reduced to life, although she still faces the death penalty.