Christa Pike said Friday that she remains in constant pain and struggles to speak a month after surviving a lethal injection in Tennessee, a failure she blames on “incompetence.”
In her first public statement since the execution, Pike said she never contemplated a life beyond her execution date and was prepared to die in peace, but woke up alone and confused in a hospital bed.
“There hasn’t been a moment since that night when I haven’t been in pain. My body hurts. My arms hurt. My hands hurt. My throat hurts. I still struggle to speak. And the pain isn’t just physical. There is pain in my mind and in my soul,” Pike said.
Pike, 50, survived two doses of pentobarbital as the state tried to execute her on Sept. 30 for the 1995 stabbing death of 19-year-old classmate Colleen Slemmer. Pike was 18 when she and her boyfriend tortured and killed Slemmer, becoming one of the youngest women to be sentenced to death.
“I’m deeply hurt by the incompetence that has put so many people in this terrible position,” she said. “I continue to think about my victim’s family and the terrible pain and loss they have endured.”
Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee has called for an investigation into what happened during the failed execution and postponed the state’s other lethal injection scheduled this year. The state’s prison chief resigned.
Pike said she's thankful for the medical workers who saved her life and the people who showed her kindness.
“I don’t know why I survived that night. I don’t know what comes next. Some days, finding hope is harder than others. For now, I am trying to heal, one day at a time. And I am holding on to the love and kindness of so many people who have reminded me that I am not alone,” she said.
The failed lethal injection left her arms burned and blistered, according to her lawyers. For the first few days of her hospitalization, Pike was unconscious and on a ventilator. Medical and lethal injection experts have focused on the possibility that a problem with the IV line caused the drug to pool in her tissue rather than entering her bloodstream.
Pike’s attorneys have urged the governor to reduce her sentence to life imprisonment. Lee told reporters this week that, “I suspect her sentence will be the same as before unless determined otherwise by the courts.”
Friday's statement was dictated to Pike's legal team from the infirmary at the prison where she is housed. Pike was hospitalized in the immediate aftermath of the failed execution and then moved back to prison at the Debra K. Johnson Rehabilitation Center.
FILE - In this image from video provided by WBIR-TV, Christa Pike cries after being sentenced to death on March 30, 1996 in Knoxville, Tenn. (WBIR-TV via AP, File)
FILE- This photo provided by the Tennessee Department of Correction shows Christa Pike on Jan. 12, 2023. (TDOC via AP)
ATLANTA (AP) — There should be no problem with the Golden State Valkyries and Atlanta Dream approaching the first WNBA Finals Game 7 in league history with a sense of urgency.
Then again, that's what Golden State coach Natalie Nakase thought about Game 6. She was baffled that her team somehow left behind its defensive intensity at the start of Thursday's 80-69 loss to the Dream that forced Game 7 at “Ballhalla” in San Francisco on Saturday night.
While the Valkyries were missing their defensive edge that was so important in their 64-55 Game 5 win, the Dream seized the opportunity by making 73.3% of their shots in the first quarter and racing to a 32-15 lead. The 32 points are the most by either team in a quarter in the series.
Atlanta kept the lead in double figures most of the remainder of the game.
“Can’t let that happen right out of the gate,” Valkyries guard Veronica Burton said. “There needs to be a sense of urgency. It’s the WNBA Finals.”
Even after the Valkyries showed fight by attempting a second-half comeback, Nakase was still struggling to comprehend the lackadaisical start so she could make sure it's not repeated in Saturday night's decisive game. She said she planned to have conversations with her players about the issue on the flight back to California.
“I put that on me of like, what did I not say, what did I not get to my team of the sense of urgency that we knew they were going to play?” Nakase said of the Dream. “We knew they were going to play desperate. We knew they were going to play like their life depends on it. For us not to match that is disappointing and frustrating. So, yeah, I need to make sure my team is prepared.”
Added Nakase of her plan to seek answers: “For me, I need clarity. I need some information.”
The Dream and Valkyries each will be playing for their first WNBA title.
Atlanta's Allisha Gray scored 23 points and Rhyne Howard had 21 in Thursday's win when Golden State's only lead was 2-0. Angel Reese added 15 points and 14 rebounds for the Dream.
“Our job is not done,” Reese said. “We definitely could be happy about it for now but we have more work to do. I think we definitely have another level that we can get to, like (Gray) was saying. We shot a lot better this game, for sure, but I think we just continue to grow from this.”
The format for the WNBA Finals was a best-of-five series until the first best-of-seven series in 2025, when the Las Vegas Aces swept the Phoenix Mercury 4-0.
The Dream lost in the Finals in 2010, 2011 and 2013. The Valkyries reached this year's Finals in only their second season of existence.
Despite Thursday's Game 6 being scheduled for a much-criticized 12:30 p.m. EDT tipoff that created concerns about fans' obligations to work and school, Atlanta supporters delivered a sellout of 17,099 at State Farm Arena.
“Shout out to the crowd, being able to come here at 12:30 on a Thursday and so many things going on in the world from school to work, to everything else,” Reese said. “We’re just super thankful. We fed off their energy. They were loud from the beginning. So we’re definitely thankful for that.”
Reese knows another packed house will be supporting the Valkyries on Saturday night.
“I think that the crowd doesn’t really get to us much but I think, obviously, Game 7 is going to be a lot louder,” Reese said. “The energy is going to be electric in there. So just honestly staying poised, staying together, and I think we’ll be fine.”
Golden State's Tiffany Hayes was called for her fifth foul in a collision for a loose ball with 5:01 remaining. Hayes was left laying on the court following the collision. She slowly walked off after receiving attention from a trainer.
Nakase said she wanted to check in again with Hayes but added “she looked good to me. Yeah, she looked fine.”
Nakase and her players firmly denied the early start — 9:30 a.m. by California time — was a factor in the Valkyries' slow start.
“No. That had nothing to do with it,” Nakase said. “We played at 1 o’clock last week. No.”
Added Gabby Williams: “They played at the same time as us, right? So it’s not an excuse. We have to be better.”
See AP’s full WNBA coverage here
Atlanta Dream's Jordin Canada walks of the court after the Dream won Game 6 of the WNBA basketball finals against the Golden State Valkyries on Thursday, Oct. 29, 2026, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)
Golden State Valkyries head coach Natalie Nakase speaks with Veronica Burton during the first half of Game 6 of the WNBA basketball finals on Thursday, Oct. 29, 2026, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)
Atlanta Dream's Allisha Gray celebrates after shooting a three-pointer during the first half of Game 6 of the WNBA basketball finals against the Golden State Valkyries on Thursday, Oct. 29, 2026, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)
Atlanta Dream's Angel Reese (5) goes up to shoot against Golden State Valkyries' Kiah Stokes during the second half of Game 6 of the WNBA basketball finals on Thursday, Oct. 29, 2026, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)
Atlanta Dream's Rhyne Howard, top, and Golden State Valkyries' Tiffany Hayes battle for the ball during the second half of Game 6 of the WNBA basketball finals on Thursday, Oct. 29, 2026, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)
