Inmate Wakes Up After Botched Lethal Injection, Lawyer Says
Christa Pike, who was believed to be brain dead following two execution attempts, regained consciousness and began speaking, her attorney stated.
Christa Pike, an inmate in Tennessee, regained consciousness and began speaking after medical professionals believed she was brain dead and prepared to remove her from life support, according to her attorney.
Pike, 50, was rushed to a hospital in critical condition on September 30 after two unsuccessful attempts to execute her at the Riverbend Maximum Security Institution in Nashville. Her attorney, Randy Spivey, stated Wednesday that by Monday night, the understanding was that Pike was brain dead and life support would be withdrawn the following day.
However, Pike woke up and started talking on Tuesday, surprising her legal team, the medical staff, and others. Spivey said he has no explanation for the turn of events between Monday night and Tuesday morning.
Pike was slated to be the first woman executed in Tennessee in over 200 years. Her case now marks her as the first inmate in the United States believed to have survived a lethal injection.