Her execution failed twice. What next for teen murderer Christa Pike?

What’s the story?

"Ms Pike has lost consciousness and still has a heartbeat and is audibly snoring."

Christa Pike, convicted as a teen for the brutal murder of 19-year-old Colleen Slemmer and who spent 32 years behind bars for her crime, was administered two doses of lethal injection in Tennessee.

She survived.

Her lawyers blamed the twice-botched execution on "difficult vein access, blown veins," and "degraded pentobarbital," the drug given to supposedly end her life.

Since her sentencing, details of the sexual abuse and mental health issues Pike suffered growing up have emerged.

Jon Sopel describes the Christa Pike story "ghastly, grisly" from start to finish.

"My God, the criminal justice system in America still has such a long way to go if it is really in the business of delivering justice," Jon says.

A reporter at the failed execution said that "nothing" was normal about what happened to Pike, saying she was complaining about the effects of the injection, before loudly snoring in front of those gathered to watch her death.

"It's remarkable that the state of Tennessee spent all that time trying to kill her, and then sent her to hospital immediately afterwards, trying to save her," Lewis Goodall says.

"Presumably so, at some point, they can try it again."

How does Pike's botched execution affect the argument for capital punishment?

Lewis can "genuinely conceive" of some crimes that could warrant being put to death for, but does not believe it should be "routine" for every serious crime such as murder.

"I'm talking about crimes almost against humanity," he says.

"Sometimes our justice system, particularly with horrendous acts, doesn't recognise the legitimate desire for retribution and vengeance.

"I think these are legitimate human instincts that the justice system ought to represent."

He says the case of Christa Pike, however, challenges this view entirely.

"What's happened to this lady, and finding a way that satisfies our demands for execution to be humane and to not potentially end in disaster like this, is very difficult."

Jon says what Pike experienced in her childhood and adolescence makes the situation much more complicated.

"She had been sexually assaulted and grew up to be a deeply disturbed individual," he says.

"Does that count for nothing in making a judgment about whether she should die or not?"

What comes next for Christa Pike?

Christa Pike remains in hospital, and due to delayed attempts at resuscitation, is expected to have suffered brain injury.

Tennessee laws state that if one lethal injection fails, a prisoner should be given a second. There are no rules about what happens if that doesn't work either – leaving Pike in limbo, and her future uncertain.

Lewis believes there now remains huge moral, and political questions over what comes next.

"There's a question about whether the state, if they fail to kill you once, has a right to have another try," he says.

"You can believe that some crimes deserve death, and still ask whether you trust the state to administer that sanction and be capable of administering that."

Where does the UK stand on capital punishment?

Execution was banned in the UK in 1965, a year after Peter Anthony Allen and Gwynne Owen Evans were hanged for murder, the last people in this country to face capital punishment.

But in 2025, a YouGov poll found that 50% of British people supported the return of capital punishment in this country.

There was even support for flogging, and the reintroduction of the stocks.

"It's easy sneer, but it does reflect the fact that among the public there is a genuine mismatch between where they think punishment ought to be, and what the justice system offers," says Lewis.

But this gets a hard no from Jon Sopel.

"By all means, have a full-life tariff for certain crimes or the most egregious murders that have taken place," he says.

"But let us not go back to capital punishment."

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