# Tennessee execution attempt fails as victim's mother dejected

> Tennessee's failed execution of Christa Pike leaves her mother dejected and legal battles unresolved.
- Title: Tennessee execution attempt fails as victim's mother dejected
- Summary: Tennessee's failed execution of Christa Pike leaves her mother dejected and legal battles unresolved. Tennessee's failed execution attempt on Christa Pike…
- Keywords: tennessee, christa pike, colleen slemmer, death row, pentobarbital, riverbend maximum security institution, vanderbilt university medical center, tennessee governor bill lee, news, entertainment, execution, attempt
- Source: Dailymail — https://dailymail.com/crime-desk/article-16190247/Christa-Pike-angry-confused-victim-mother-dejected.html?ito=1490&ns_campaign=1490&ns_mchannel=rss
- Published: 2026-10-08T04:14:26+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: tennessee, christa pike, colleen slemmer, death row, pentobarbital, riverbend maximum security institution, vanderbilt university medical center, tennessee governor bill lee, news, entertainment
## Failed execution attempt
Tennessee's failed execution attempt on Christa Pike left her conscious and shackled in a hospital bed.
## Pike's condition
Pike, 50, is awake but has a blood clot, pneumonia, and cannot swallow or move her arms.
## Mother's reaction
Slemmer's mother May Martinez described the failed execution as a mess and refused to eat for days.
## Pike's crime
Pike and her boyfriend tortured Slemmer to death in January 1.
## Legal status
Tennessee law does not allow for a convict surviving two pentobarbital doses.
## Governor's stance
Governor Bill Lee reaffirmed support for capital punishment despite repeated requests to commute Pike's sentence.
## Legal battle
Pike's attorneys seek to preserve evidence for future challenges while state claims it has preserved all materials.
## Execution details
Pike was injected with seven needles, her arms swollen, burned, and blistered.
## IV issues
Pike's attorneys claim IV lines caused pentobarbital to enter her body instead of bloodstream.
## Independent investigation
Governor ordered independent investigation into Pike's case after failed execution.
## Mother's statement
Slemmer's mother said, 'It doesn't matter what I think. They're going to do what they're going to do'.

> It doesn't matter what I think. They're going to do what they're going to do
## Pike's future
Pike's future remains unclear as Tennessee has no provision for surviving two pentobarbital doses.
## State response
State claims evidence preserved but attorneys say information is deliberately withheld.
## Next steps
Pike faces uncertain future with no guarantee of life in prison or execution.
## Key takeaway

Tennessee's failed execution attempt on Christa Pike, who was convicted of murdering her classmate in 1995, has left her mother dejected and legal challenges over her future unresolved.