# Pike shows physical recovery after botched execution

> Death row inmate Christa Pike has regained consciousness and is walking with assistance, but faces significant cognitive and physical challenges following her failed lethal injection in Tennessee.
- Title: Pike shows physical recovery after botched execution
- Summary: Death row inmate Christa Pike has regained consciousness and is walking with assistance, but faces significant cognitive and physical challenges following…
- Keywords: christa pike, tennessee, lethal injection, botched execution, death penalty, colleen slemmer, news, Pike, shows, physical, recovery, botched
- Source: ABC News — https://abcnews.com/US/christa-pike-remarkable-physical-recovery-cognitive-challenges-remain/story?id=137110736
- Author: ABC News
- Read time: 2 min
- Topics: christa pike, tennessee, lethal injection, botched execution, death penalty, colleen slemmer, news
## Pike regains consciousness after failed execution
Christa Pike, Tennessee's only female death row inmate, regained consciousness on Tuesday following her botched lethal injection on September thirtieth in Nashville. She was initially on a ventilator.
## Pike's first words after waking
When Pike woke up, attorney Randy Spivey with the Tennessee Office of the Post Conviction Defender believes her first words were, where am I and who are you?

> Where am I and who are you?
## Physical recovery is remarkable
Pike is walking with assistance around her hospital room and has started a regular diet.Her lungs are clear.Attorney Stephen Ferrell with Federal Defender Services of Eastern Tennessee said her physical state is improving remarkably.

> her physical state is improving remarkably
## Severe burns from injection sites
Pike continues to experience pain from severe burns on her arms. When trying to sign papers, she had difficulty holding a pen and writing her signature. Doctors see significant tissue damage around the injection sites.
## Cognitive challenges remain unclear
Pike has cognitive challenges with concentration and memory. Ferrell said it is like starting a sentence and losing track of where she was going. Doctors advised it may take months to understand lasting cognitive injuries.

> It's that sort of starting a sentence and losing track of where she was going.
## Pike was expected to be brain dead
Pike, fifty, was believed to have been brain dead and was going to be taken off life support the day she woke up to the shock of everyone, attorney Randy Spivey told reporters Wednesday.
## Pike survived two lethal doses
Pike survived being administered two lethal doses of pentobarbital. She is the first person reported to have survived lethal injection after being given medications, according to the Death Penalty Information Center.
## Governor orders halt to executions
In the wake of the botched execution, Governor Bill Lee ordered a temporary halt to scheduled executions in Tennessee. Tennessee Department of Correction Commissioner Frank Strada resigned.
## Independent review ordered
Governor Lee appointed former U.S. Attorney Ed Stanton to conduct an independent review of the Tennessee Department of Correction's execution attempt. Stanton will determine whether protocol was followed and consider additional recommendations.
## Key takeaway

Christa Pike, Tennessee's only female death row inmate, survived a botched lethal injection on September thirtieth and has made physical progress, though cognitive injuries and severe burns remain uncertain.