The attempted execution of Christa Pike, the only woman currently on Tennessee’s death row, has sparked intense scrutiny after the procedure failed to result in her death. Convicted for the brutal 1995 murder of her classmate, Colleen Slemmer, Pike was 18 at the time of the crime. While her accomplices received life sentences, Pike was handed the death penalty, a sentence that legal experts today argue might have been different if her history of severe trauma, sexual abuse, and mental health struggles had been properly presented during her initial trial.

Despite ongoing legal appeals citing the Eighth Amendment’s protection against cruel and unusual punishment, the Supreme Court ultimately allowed the execution to proceed after a day of procedural delays. During the attempt, witnesses and legal counsel reported that Pike remained conscious and snoring even after two doses of lethal medication were administered. Following this botched attempt, she was transported to a medical facility. This incident marks the second time this year that Tennessee has struggled with the mechanics of lethal injection, reigniting a national debate about the state’s capability to carry out capital punishment without causing unnecessary suffering.