At least seven needles were used to administer the lethal injection doses into Pike’s arm over the course of an hour, said one of her lawyers, who witnessed the failed execution attempt.2 min readOct 2, 2026 07:30 AM IST First published on: Oct 2, 2026 at 07:07 AM IST ShareWhatsapptwitterFacebookThis photo provided by the Tennessee Department of Correction shows Christa Pike. (Source: AP)Christa Pike, a woman on death row in Tennessee, is in a critical condition in hospital after she survived two doses of the drug used to execute her, her lawyers said on Thursday, according to the Associated Press (AP). Pike, 50, was due to be put to death on Wednesday for a murder she committed at 18. She would have been the first woman executed in the state in more than 200 years.The attempt failed, and she was taken to hospital by ambulance. Governor Bill Lee has now stopped all further executions this year and ordered an independent review. Her lawyers want her death sentence changed to a lesser one. AP quotes one death penalty expert as calling the failed execution unprecedented.What happened in the death chamberPike’s lawyers say prison staff spent about an hour trying to place an IV line before any drug was given. Her lawyer Randy Spivey told reporters he counted at least seven needles in her left arm alone. AP says Pike tried to help, pointing out where staff might find a vein and asking them to try higher on her shoulder.Also read Christa Pike execution: Two lethal doses, but she survived. What’s next?Staff then gave a first dose of pentobarbital, the single drug Tennessee uses. A second dose followed about an hour after officials first raised the curtains. Neither dose worked. Witnesses said Pike could be heard snoring behind a closed curtain until the microphone was switched off nearly 30 minutes later. She spent more than 90 minutes in the chamber, Spivey said, and he called the process cruel and torturous.AdvertisementLoading Recommendations...AdvertisementAdvertisement