Death row inmate Christa Pike wakes and speaks after surviving failed lethal injection

Christa Pike, a death row inmate in Tennessee, has regained consciousness and can speak at the hospital after surviving a lethal injection on Sept. 30, according to her lawyer. Pike, 50, was sentenced to death for killing a classmate in 1995.

According to the Death Penalty Information Center, Pike is the first death row inmate to survive after being given a lethal dose. The unprecedented case raises questions about her medical and legal future.

Christa Pike's current condition

Pike is being guarded and recovering at a hospital in Nashville, where she was taken for emergency care after surviving the injection carried out by the Tennessee Department of Correction. When she was admitted on Sept. 30, her arm was swollen, burned and blistered.

Her lawyer said that, "ironically," Pike is now "awake, able to speak and continuing to receive intensive medical care," while "still handcuffed and shackled to her hospital bed." They described her recovery as "medically unprecedented."

Her prognosis remains "unclear," and she will at minimum face a lengthy recovery.

Why was Pike sentenced to death?

Pike, 50, was sentenced to death after being convicted of murder committed when she was a teenager. The case once fueled debate over capital punishment for juveniles, because she was just 18 when she and her boyfriend beat, tortured and killed classmate Colleen Slemmer, 19, at a training camp in 1995.

Pike's lawyers had sought to have her sentence reduced, citing her age, childhood sexual abuse and mental health problems, including post-traumatic stress disorder. The case also drew attention ahead of the execution date, because Pike would have been the first woman executed by the state of Tennessee in more than 200 years.

What happened in the execution chamber?

7:30 p.m. – Pike's execution began on the evening of Sept. 30 in the execution chamber at Riverbend Maximum Security Institution in Nashville. She was given the chance to say last words before two doses of the chemical pentobarbital were administered to end her life.

7:35 p.m. – Pike raised her head and said her arm hurt.

8:53 p.m. – Media witnesses were escorted out of the viewing room.

9:14 p.m. – An ambulance arrived at the prison to take Pike to the hospital.

Reporters who witnessed the execution said a black curtain was drawn from inside the execution chamber while intravenous lines were being inserted, in line with state rules meant to conceal the identities of the staff carrying it out.

Tennessee's execution protocol calls for a second set of pentobarbital syringes to be on hand in case an inmate does not die after the first dose. However, there are no guidelines for a situation in which an inmate is still alive after the second dose.

What will Pike's lawyers do next?

Pike's lawyers are expected in court on Wednesday to seek more information from the Tennessee Department of Correction about the failed execution. They are seeking a court order requiring the prison system to preserve all data from the execution, including drug lot numbers, syringes, execution logs and other information.

Medical and lethal injection experts say a problem may have occurred when the intravenous line was inserted, causing the drug to build up in tissue rather than enter the bloodstream. Pike's lawyers said in a court filing: "It appears that no member of the execution team realized that the IV line was misplaced or that the vein had ruptured."

Before the execution, Pike's lawyers had asked for her to be put to death by firing squad or hanging, because she has small veins and a platelet condition that makes inserting needles difficult and increases the risk of failure. After the failed execution, her lawyers asked for her sentence to be reduced to life in prison without parole.

What do Tennessee officials say?

Republican Governor Bill Lee called the situation "deeply troubling" and ordered an "independent, comprehensive review to determine exactly what happened." He also postponed the state's only remaining execution this year.

Frank Strada, the former commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Correction, who led the prison system at the time, agreed to resign later this month.

U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn, the Republican candidate to succeed Lee as governor, called on Tennessee to study other execution methods to ensure the death penalty can continue to be carried out.

It is still unclear whether or when Tennessee might seek to execute Pike again. Her lawyers argue that doing so would constitute cruel and unusual punishment and could violate the prohibition on trying or punishing a person twice for the same offense.