Doctor Says Misplaced IV Botched Christa Pike's 45-Minute Tennessee Execution
Updated
Updated · Fox News · Nov 2
Doctor Says Misplaced IV Botched Christa Pike's 45-Minute Tennessee Execution
3 articles · Updated · Fox News · Nov 2
Summary
Dr. Mark Fowler said Christa Pike’s Sept. 30 execution failed because the IV was improperly placed, sending pentobarbital into arm tissue rather than her bloodstream.
Two doses of pentobarbital left Pike still alive and gasping after about 45 minutes, Fowler said, and another half-hour later he feared she could survive with irreversible brain damage.
Pike had complained that her arm felt like it was about to burst, and Fowler told New York Magazine the team should have stopped and reassessed when she reported severe pain.
A judge has ordered Tennessee to preserve evidence from the botched execution, while Pike says she remains in constant pain and still struggles to speak.
Gov. Bill Lee has halted Tennessee’s remaining 2026 executions and ordered an independent review, though he has indicated Pike remains under a death sentence unless courts rule otherwise.