Christa Pike Reportedly Conscious After Execution Attempt

Why it matters locally: The unusual outcome of this execution attempt involving an inmate on Tennessee's death row could prompt a review of the state's lethal injection protocols and the efficacy of pentobarbital within the Tennessee Department of Correction.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Christa Pike, an inmate on Tennessee's death row, has regained consciousness and is speaking after an execution attempt on Thursday, her lawyers stated. The procedure, scheduled for 10 a.m. CDT at the Tennessee Prison for Women, did not result in Pike's death. She currently remains on life support. Defense attorneys Kelley Henry and Christopher Minton confirmed Pike was conscious by Thursday afternoon. "Christa Pike is awake and speaking," Henry said in a statement. "She is currently still on life support, and her family is with her." Officials administered a single drug, pentobarbital, during the execution attempt. The Tennessee Department of Correction and the Governor's office have not yet released public statements regarding the incident. State law requires that a person remain on life support following an execution attempt if they do not die during the procedure. This protocol allows for the inmate's organs to be donated if they choose. Pentobarbital, a barbiturate, has seen use in lethal injection protocols across the United States. Its use in executions has drawn scrutiny in the past due to its potential effects and the manufacturing processes of the drug. Pike received a death sentence for the 1995 murder of Colleen Slemmer. Slemmer, 19, was a fellow Job Corps student in Knoxville at the time of the crime.