Christa Pike is in critical condition and receiving lifesaving hospital care, her attorneys said Thursday, as lawyer Randy Spivey reported that staff inserted at least seven needles into her left arm during Tennessee’s failed execution attempt. One needle appeared bent when withdrawn, Spivey said. Her lawyer said she was strapped to the table for more than an hour and her arm turned purple.

Pike, 50, survived two doses of pentobarbital Wednesday night and remained alive more than 40 minutes after the last dose, witnesses said. Gov. Bill Lee suspended all scheduled executions for the rest of 2026 and ordered an independent review. Pike was sentenced to death for the 1995 murder of 19-year-old classmate Colleen Slemmer, committed when Pike was 18. The attempt proceeded after the US Supreme Court lifted an appeals court stay.

President Donald Trump questioned the failure Thursday, saying, “The medication didn't exactly work,” and, “It shouldn't be very difficult.” Senator Marsha Blackburn, Tennessee’s Republican gubernatorial nominee, called for officials to “bring back the electric chair.” Pike’s attorney demanded that Lee commute her sentence after the failed attempt.