Overview
- Christa Pike survived a scheduled execution after two doses of pentobarbital were given and intravenous access repeatedly failed during the procedure.
- Prosecutors and court records show execution staff made multiple attempts to place IV lines, using about ten needles and bending at least one needle so medication may have entered surrounding tissue instead of a vein.
- Pike's lawyers had warned in January that she has a myeloproliferative blood disorder with high platelets and hard-to-access veins, and they recommended use of butterfly needles to reduce the risk of pain or pulmonary edema.
- The physician involved, Mark Fowler, had been part of a separate failed execution in May and has said he has not placed a central venous line since 2013, raising questions about his experience and the state's staffing practices.
- Since the September 30 attempt, Tennessee has halted executions through year-end, the corrections director resigned, Pike was returned to solitary and has filed an emergency motion seeking different housing and relief from isolation while investigations and court challenges proceed.