The filing, received by the court at 8:26 p.m. CDT, alleges the prolonged execution is causing Pike unnecessary physical and mental suffering and violates her constitutional protection against cruel and unusual punishment.
Her attorneys also asked the court to order the Tennessee Department of Correction to remove Pike’s IV catheters and take immediate lifesaving measures.
“Tonight the State of Tennessee once again failed to carry out a lawful execution,” Pike’s attorneys said. “We take no pleasure in being right, but the concerns raised by Ms. Pike proved to be true: difficult vein access, blown veins, degraded pentobarbital, no emergency medical care available when things inevitably go wrong, all under a protocol that remains veiled in secrecy. Christa is being treated at a nearby hospital. We have not been informed as to her condition.”
TDOC issued a statement around 11 p.m. CDT:
“The Tennessee Department of Correction followed every step of the State’s lawful, established execution protocol approved by the Attorney General’s Office. The lethal injection chemical in the protocol has consistently been effective, and the protocol does not allow for additional procedures beyond what was carried out this evening. Christa Pike has been transported to an off-site medical facility.”
Gov. Bill Lee then issued the following statement, saying that no executions will happen for the rest of the year and a third party will be reviewing what happened during Pike’s attempted execution.
“Carrying out a lawfully imposed sentence is among the State’s most serious responsibilities, and the people of Tennessee expect it to be done in a manner that is not only legal and constitutional, but is effective.
I have ordered a comprehensive, third-party review to determine exactly what occurred. Therefore, the remaining scheduled execution will not be carried out this year.”
Only one other person was scheduled to be executed in Tennessee this year, and it was Gary Wayne Sutton from Blount County. Sutton has also spent decades on death row and was convicted in the brutal 1992 killing of Tommy Griffin.
He was scheduled to be put to death on Dec. 3.
What witnesses described
Around 9 p.m. CDT, media witnesses said in a press conference that when they were asked to leave the room around 8:53 p.m. CDT, they were unsure if Pike was alive or dead. Ambulances were seen during the Tennessee Department of Correction press conference.
The first round of pentobarbital was administered around 7:30 p.m., and a few minutes later Pike turned to her spiritual advisor and asked if they had administered the injection yet. Then the blinds were lowered, according to 10News Senior Investigative Producer John North, who witnessed it.
Witness Catherine Sweeney with WPLN said, “They did two separate rounds of pentobarbital, which I’ve never seen before. The protocol does say that they should do a second round if the person is still alive after the first push of 500 mg of pentobarbital.”
Another witness and reporter from Roane County News, Damon Lawrence, said, “At 7:26, the warden asked Christa Pike if she had any last words. She said, ‘I do.’ He told her to proceed. She said, ‘I just want to say that I’m going to leave this world the way I’m going to leave this world, the way I spent most of my life — and that is with love.’ And she said she loves the people who are angry with her just as much as she loves the people who are on her side. She said, ‘I’m at peace, and I’m ready to go.”
WKRN reporter and witness Tori Gesser said Pike said, “My arm feels like it’s about to burst open,” and then she smiled really big.
Witnesses said they could hear things going on, but could not see what was happening.
“The curtains closed at first at 7:46, and she was clearly still alive,” Gesser said. “She was clearly still breathing and snoring. We could audibly hear that. The curtains opened again. Three minutes later, she was snoring very loudly at that point, mouth open, snoring. And then the curtains closed again at 8:05, and that’s when they remained closed.”
Full coverage: https://www.wkyc.com/article/news/crime/officials-provide-update-on-christa-pike-execution/51-af0fd8bd-1591-4e7d-9b21-c351fac2327f
