Tennessee is facing complex legal questions about whether it can attempt to execute Christa Pike for a second time after a recent lethal injection procedure failed, experts say.
Pike, 50, was sentenced to death in 1995 for the murder of her classmate Colleen Slemmer. During the attempted execution on September 30, executioners administered two doses of the lethal drug pentobarbital, which resulted in burns and blisters on her arms. Her prognosis remains uncertain, according to her legal team.
Legal experts note that while some states have pursued second execution attempts, these instances typically involved procedures halted before any drugs were administered. Pike's case is distinct because she was subjected to the lethal drugs, potentially causing significant harm.
Outgoing Republican Governor Bill Lee has halted all executions in Tennessee and initiated an external review of the Sept. 30 incident. His office has not commented on whether the state intends to pursue a second execution attempt.
"Whether or not it would be lawful for the state of Tennessee to attempt to execute her again is a complex question that will take significant time, attention and analysis," said Stephen Johnson, a criminal defense attorney and president-elect of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers. "Multiple state and federal courts" will likely be involved.
While on a ventilator for several days following the failed attempt, Pike regained consciousness and became aware of the events. Her attorneys plan to explore the medical and psychological effects of the drug doses and her subsequent treatment to determine if she is legally competent for execution. This process would likely involve extensive evaluations and lead to prolonged litigation.
Past execution attempts have encountered complications. In 2022, Alan Miller and Kenneth Smith in Alabama survived lethal injection attempts. Their legal challenges argued that a second attempt would violate the Eighth Amendment's prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment. While courts initially found these arguments "plausible," the U.S. Supreme Court did not take up the case, and both individuals were later executed by nitrogen gas in 2024.
Thomas Creech in Idaho and Tony Carruthers in Tennessee also remain on death row after failed lethal injection attempts. However, legal experts like Jordan Steiker, co-director of the Capital Punishment Center at the University of Texas, distinguish Pike's case due to the direct administration of lethal drugs and the physical harm she sustained, contrasting it with the psychological trauma experienced in other cases.
Historically, in 1946, Willie Francis in Louisiana survived an electrocution attempt. The U.S. Supreme Court later ruled that a second execution attempt was permissible, stating that "accidents happen for which no man is to blame." However, a dissenting justice at the time described the experience as "death by installments."
Steiker suggests that contemporary community standards regarding the acceptability of a second execution attempt would be the guiding principle today, referencing the Court's modern "evolving standards of decency" approach to the Eighth Amendment. He believes Pike's case, if pursued for a second execution, would represent "uncharted territory."
Lawyers for those facing the death penalty note the absence of statutes explicitly barring a second execution attempt after a failed one. John Mills, an attorney representing death row inmates, raised the concern that a second attempt could constitute torture, a violation of the Eighth Amendment, especially given Pike's prior medical complications that could make the procedure agonizing.
"The most obvious way to avoid litigation over this would be for the governor to commute the sentence," Steiker added.