Emergency call records released following the failed execution of Christa Pike in Tennessee on September 30 reveal significant confusion among prison staff and emergency responders that apparently delayed her medical treatment.
Pike, 50, was convicted of killing Colleen Slemmer in 1995 alongside her then-boyfriend. She received two doses of lethal injection but did not die. Prison staff then transported her to a hospital.
According to the AP news agency, which obtained the emergency call audio, the confusion stemmed partly from a disconnect between prison staff. The initial call from Riverbend Prison came at approximately 20:40 local time. The caller reported: "We've been carrying out an execution tonight. We've administered 10 grams of pentobarbital. The person is not yet deceased. That started approximately one hour ago. And we're calling for an ambulance."
First responders initially considered the call false because the caller could not verify themselves using a required code. At 21:07, other prison staff from central command stated they "would have been the ones to call in" and that they "did not make that call." Prison officials did not verify the initial call as genuine until approximately 21:11, roughly 30 minutes after it was placed. Only then were emergency responders allowed through the prison gates.
At 21:34, as Pike was being transported to the hospital, a medic asked a colleague to ensure the prison knew her destination, "just 'cause there's been so much other confusion."
Pike's legal team has attributed the failed execution to pentobarbital spreading under her skin rather than reaching her bloodstream in sufficient quantity. The Tennessee Department of Corrections has not yet stated what it believes went wrong. Pike has since been discharged from hospital, though her legal team cautioned she faces a "long road to recovery." It remains unclear what treatment, if any, she is receiving back in prison.
Pike is believed to be the only person to have survived an execution attempt by lethal injection. The state has paused executions for the remainder of the year pending an investigation. Some state Republicans have called for a new execution method. Pike's legal team is asking Governor Bill Lee to commute her sentence to life without parole. The head of the state's corrections department is resigning in the wake of the botched execution.