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Criminologist breaks down botched Christa Pike Execution

October 12, 2026 · 1 h

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Hit subscribe so you don't miss any updates. Christa Pike was supposed to become the first woman executed by Tennessee in more than 200 years. Instead, she survived her own execution. Pike was sentenced to death for the 1995 torture and murder of 19 year old Colleen Slemmer. On September 30, Tennessee attempted to execute her by lethal injection, but after two doses of pentobarbital, Pike continued breathing and was eventually rushed to hospital in critical condition. The extraordinary failure has thrown Tennessee's execution system into turmoil. Governor Bill Lee has halted executions for the remainder of the year and ordered an independent review into what went wrong. How does an execution go this badly wrong? And after surviving an attempt by the state to kill her, what happens to Christa Pike now? Check out our Patreon for bonus weekly episodes and access to live recordings, plus monthly newsletters! Click here to join: https://www.patreon.com/c/ThisMuchisTrueCrime TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thismuchistruecrime Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thismuchistruecrime Produced by Podcast House. This Much Is True Crime is proudly sponsored by the TRUE CRIME channel. Watch TRUE CRIME on Sky 146, Freely 37, Freeview 67, Freesat 135 and Virgin 148.

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