Emergency vehicles arrive at Riverbend Maximum Security Institution after the execution of Christa Pike was halted Wednesday, Sept. 30, 2026, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

Tennessee's bungled attempt to execute Christa Pike was not the first time a state has failed to carry out a lethal injection over problems in the death chamber.

Pike, 50, has regained consciousness and is speaking a week after Tennessee gave her two lethal doses of pentobarbital. Outgoing Republican Gov. Bill Lee has ordered a review into what went wrong and the state has not said whether they will again try executing her, which experts say could wade into uncharted legal waters.


Pike, who was sentenced to die for torturing and killing 19-year-old Colleen Slemmer in 1995, is one of at least eight condemned inmates in the U.S. who left their state's execution chamber still alive because of problems carrying out the punishment, according to the Death Penalty Information Center. Pike is the only one who was actually administered lethal drugs before the process was halted, according to the organization.

Not all have faced execution a second time. Three of the inmates would die years later in prison, two remain alive and two were executed after another attempt.

Lethal injection failures in Ohio

Ohio unsuccessfully tried to put Romell Broom to death by lethal injection in September 2009. The execution was called off after two hours when technicians could not find a suitable vein, and Broom cried in pain while receiving 18 needle sticks.

Broom died in December 2020 of possible complications of COVID-19 while on Ohio's death row.

Ohio also failed to execute another inmate, Alva Campbell, in November 2017 by lethal injection. The execution was halted after executioners couldn't find a usable vein.

Campbell was found unresponsive in his death row cell in March 2018. It was determined that he died from natural causes.

Alabama executed inmates a second time after failed attempts

Alabama called off the execution of Doyle Lee Hamm in February 2018 because of problems getting the intra
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