Folks, I almost spilled my coffee reading this one. The story of Christa Pike’s failed execution is just getting weirder and weirder. According to 911 dispatch recordings, emergency help for Pike was delayed due to confusion among first responders and Tennessee prison officials following her failed execution last month. I mean, you can’t make this stuff up. The recordings, obtained by The Associated Press, show that precious minutes elapsed as officials and responders tried to figure out whether a request for emergency help in the execution chamber was legitimate.
The initial 911 call came in at 8:40 p.m. on September 30, just over an hour after the attempted lethal injection got underway. But the caller was unable to provide a code that would help verify the legitimacy of the request. Bless their hearts, it seems like a simple thing, but apparently, it caused a lot of confusion. A dispatcher even said, “Per supervisors here at the DEC, we have been informed it is a false call. There is no medical assistance needed at Riverbend Prison.” Yeah, because that’s exactly what you want to hear when someone’s life is on the line.
It wasn’t until about half an hour after the initial call — close to 9:11 p.m. — that prison officials affirmed it was real and began letting responders through the gates. I guess that’s what they mean by “better late than never.” Neither the Tennessee Department of Correction nor Pike’s legal team immediately responded to requests for comment. No surprise there.
Pike, 50, was hospitalized after surviving two doses of pentobarbital as the state tried to execute her for the 1995 stabbing death of classmate Colleen Slemmer. She was 18 when she tortured and killed Slemmer with her boyfriend, becoming one of the youngest women to be sentenced to death. State protocol calls for a second dose of pentobarbital if the first doesn’t result in death, but it doesn’t spell out what to do if an inmate survives the second injection. I guess they didn’t think that one through.
The first 911 call reported that Pike was unconscious and not breathing normally. After being taken to a hospital, Pike was on a ventilator for several days. At one point, her attorneys did not expect her to survive. She regained consciousness last Tuesday and began talking limitedly and walking with assistance, they said. Pike was discharged from the hospital and returned to the women’s prison where she was housed for 30 years, her lawyers said Saturday.
The confusion began with the initial 911 call, which came from a person whose name and title were redacted. The caller told a dispatcher that they were at the Riverbend Maximum Security Institution where they had tried to execute someone, but she was still alive. As emergency responders worked to verify the call, they were in touch with representatives of the prison’s Central Control, who said they “would have been the ones to call in” and they “did not make that call.” Somewhere in Atlanta, a producer thought this sounded terrifying, and now we’re all reading about it.
Two subsequent emergency calls were made, including one at 9:08 p.m. by one of Pike’s attorneys, Kelly Gleason. Gleason said on the call, “My client, Christa Gail Pike, is undergoing a state execution. She has completed the stages of the protocol and last we knew from the attorney who is present, she is still alive and breathing and needs immediate life-saving care.” I guess that’s one way to get someone’s attention.
Further executions have been paused pending review. The Tennessee Department of Correction has not said what went wrong in the attempted execution. Gov. Bill Lee paused further execution attempts pending a review. It’s unclear whether the state will try executing Pike again. Medical experts have raised a few possibilities that could explain how Pike was able to survive, including potential drug quality issues and the placement of IV lines causing the drug to pool in her tissue. Before the execution attempt, Pike’s attorneys told courts and prison officials that she had a blood disorder that could cause clotting at injection sites.
In conclusion, the story of Christa Pike’s failed execution is a mess, and it’s still unfolding. With all the confusion and delays, it’s a wonder anyone knows what’s going on. As I finish my coffee, I’m left thinking, what’s next in this crazy story? Will they try to execute her again? Only time will tell, but one thing’s for sure, it’ll be a wild ride. And who knows, maybe they’ll even get it right next time – but I’m not holding my breath. 🙄
Armchair patriot. Believes in the free market, cold beer, and that there’s always a guy named George behind every CNN segment.
Former remote-throwing champion turned #1 couch commentator on liberal panic in the media. Born in Texas (or so his mug says), he earned a degree in Fake Newsology & Beer Philosophy from YouTube University.
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