Christa Pike wakes after botched Tennessee execution: "Where am I?"

Convicted killer Christa Pike survived two lethal injections in Tennessee and woke asking basic questions. Her lawyer says she faces a long recovery with a blood clot and pneumonia.

Condemned woman regains consciousness after failed lethal injection in Nashville

Christa Pike, the 50-year-old death row inmate convicted of the 1995 murder of Colleen Slemmer, woke in a Nashville hospital bed following a botched execution attempt last week and immediately asked: "Where am I and who are you?" Dublin Live reports that Pike had reportedly survived two lethal doses of pentobarbital before being rushed for emergency medical treatment.

Speaking to reporters outside a Tennessee courthouse, her attorney said Pike was "angry and confused" upon regaining consciousness and was "very aware that the state tried to execute her." He described the physical aftermath as severe, noting "extraordinary" swelling to both her hands — likening the appearance to "if you tried to blow up a surgical glove."

Pike had been scheduled to become the first woman executed in Tennessee in more than two centuries. The execution was halted after she reportedly survived both doses of the drug administered and subsequently regained consciousness, according to her legal team.

Her lawyers told the court the failed procedure was "foreseeable and foreseen," citing her medical condition. Attorney Randy Spivey said: "What happened to Christa is exactly what the state was warned would happen, and there are so many questions that need to be answered, not by Christa — but by the state of Tennessee." Spivey added that Pike had been "at peace" and had "helped the execution team find what they thought was venous access."

Since regaining consciousness, Pike has been unable to swallow or move her arms, both of which remain swollen. She has also developed a blood clot and pneumonia. "I don't know what function she will regain," Spivey said, adding "we do know that there is a long road ahead."

A second member of Pike's legal team stated that their initial understanding had been that she was "brain dead" and that life support would be removed the following day. He described Pike as a "survivor," noting she had endured childhood sexual abuse, multiple rapes, a suicide attempt at age 12, and now a state execution attempt.

May Martinez, mother of murder victim Colleen Slemmer, said she had never believed Pike would die during the procedure and now doubts the state of Tennessee will make a further attempt to carry out the sentence. "I don't believe they'll try again," Martinez indicated, saying she is losing faith that her daughter's killer will ever face the death penalty.

Pike was sentenced to death for the savage killing of Colleen Slemmer in January 1995.

Source: Dublin Live