Inmate Survives Failed Tennessee Lethal Injection as Texas Uses Same Drug in Execution

Overview

• Christa Pike was taken to hospital after a Sept. 30 execution attempt in Tennessee in which two doses of pentobarbital were administered but failed to cause death.
• Pike is conscious in a Nashville hospital, able to stand and walk short distances, but she remains confused, has serious arm injuries and an uncertain long-term prognosis.
• A Tennessee judge ordered preservation of all materials from the procedure, including IV lines, syringes, drug packaging and psychological records, while the governor suspended executions through year-end.
• Texas went ahead with the execution of Jamaal Howard on Oct. 7 using pentobarbital after the U.S. Supreme Court denied a stay, despite his lawyers’ requests for a 30-day delay and drug-disclosure information.
• The cases have raised fresh questions about how states obtain and prepare pentobarbital, the need for transparent dosing and chain-of-custody records, and the likelihood of new Eighth Amendment litigation and policy reviews.