Pike, now 50, was sentenced to death in 1996 for the murder of 19-year-old Colleen Slemmer, which was perpetrated along with her then-boyfriend, Tadaryl Shipp.

Pike killed Slemmer at a camp for troubled teens after accusing Slemmer of insulting her and attempting to steal Shipp from her.

Two other residents at the camp later testified that Pike had bragged about the murder and showed them a piece of Slemmer's skull.

Shipp was given a life sentence with the possibility of parole, and he remains in prison. He was spared the death penalty for his part in the attack because he was not yet legally an adult at the time.

Image source, Family handout

Jim Reed
Health reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Pentobarbital is used by doctors as a sedative or to control seizures, while vets use it to euthanise animals.

In high doses, it suppresses brain activity until breathing slows and the heart stops.

According to the Death Penalty Information Center, 29 prisoners have been executed by lethal injection in the US in 2026, eight of them using pentobarbital.

During Joe Biden's presidency, federal executions involving the drug were halted while officials reviewed concerns it could cause unnecessary suffering. Those resumed later under Donald Trump.

In May, the state execution of convicted murderer Tony Carruthers was postponed after staff were unable to find a vein to administer Pentobarbital.

Dr Joel Zivot, an anaesthesiologist advising Christa Pike's defence team, said she also had small veins and suggested some of the chemical may have entered the tissue beneath her skin rather than her bloodstream.

Image source, Tennessee Department of Correction

Pike was scheduled to be put to death in Tennessee on 30 September. The Supreme Court allowed the injections at the 11th hour after earlier appeals and delays.

She was given two injections of the drug pentobarbital, but her legal team said those failed to stop her heartbeat. Last week, lawyers said she was unconscious, intubated and on a ventilator.

But by late on Tuesday, her legal team said their client was now conscious and speaking.

During the execution attempt, prison officials tried to start intravenous (IV) lines by using at least seven needles on Pike, according to her lawyers.

While receiving the two doses, "she could be heard crying, whimpering, and breathing loudly", her lawyers said.

Lawyers for US death row inmate Christa Pike are in court this morning after reporting last night that their client is now "conscious and speaking" and expected to make a recovery, nearly a week after her failed execution.

The 50-year-old inmate survived two lethal injections of the drug pentobarbital and was later transferred to hospital in Nashville, Tennessee, for treatment.

In court this morning, her attorneys are asking a Tennessee judge to order the state to preserve all evidence from her botched execution - this includes drugs, syringes, IV lines, needles and other medical equipment used in the attempt.

A news conference from Pike’s attorneys is expected to follow, which you can follow by pressing watch live above.

We'll also bring you all the latest lines here.