What the Released 911 Calls Reveal About Christa Pike's Failed Execution

Tennessee officials called 911 about an hour after beginning the execution of Christa Pike on Sept. 30 because she had not died, according to a transcript and audio released by the Metro Nashville Emergency Communications Center. ABC News reported that callers described her as unconscious with slow, labored breathing.

The release adds detail to an execution attempt that Pike survived. It has already led Gov. Bill Lee to pause scheduled executions in the state and order an independent review.

The central numbers in the 911 calls

• 8:40 p.m. CT, Sept. 30: The time of the first call, according to the transcript. It came from the Riverbend Maximum Security Institution in Nashville.
• About 1 hour: The caller said the execution had started roughly that long before the call. The caller added that Pike was "not yet deceased."
• 10 grams: The amount of pentobarbital the caller said had been administered. ABC News reported that Pike survived two lethal injections of the sedative.
• Nearly a week: How long it took Pike to regain consciousness, her attorneys said. She was initially on a ventilator.
• 1995: The year of the murder of 19-year-old Colleen Slemmer, for which Pike was sentenced to death.

What the callers said

According to the transcript, the dispatcher asked whether Pike was breathing normally. The caller said her breathing was very labored and slow. Asked about chest pain, the caller said they did not know because Pike was not conscious. The caller requested an ambulance.

Kelly Gleason, one of Pike's attorneys with the Tennessee Office of the Post Conviction Defender, also phoned 911. Audio of her call shows she told the dispatcher that Pike was still alive and needed immediate life-saving care. Gleason said Pike was not awake and was snoring. The dispatcher said they were working to send the Tennessee Highway Patrol to the prison.

The emergency communications center said the first call was exempt from public release under Tennessee law. It said it instead prepared a written account based on the audio, calling that a good-faith effort to share more information.

Where Pike stands now

Pike is the only woman on Tennessee's death row. Her attorneys said she regained consciousness after nearly a week and has since been released from the hospital and returned to prison. They said the announcement came Saturday.

The attorneys say she suffered burns on her arms from the pentobarbital and has had cognitive problems since waking. They had warned in the months before the execution that the drugs carried a significant risk of pain and suffering. They are now urging Lee to commute her sentence to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

The Death Penalty Information Center said Pike is the first person reported to have survived lethal injection after receiving the medications. Its executive director called the attempt the worst the group has seen and unlike any other botched execution in the modern era.

Why it matters: oversight of how Tennessee carries out executions

The calls offer a public account of what happened inside the prison, and they show state officials and a defense lawyer both seeking emergency help for the person being executed. They also raise questions about how much information the public can obtain, since the first call was withheld under state law and released only as a transcript.

The state has responded in several ways. Lee ordered a temporary halt to scheduled executions. Tennessee Department of Correction Commissioner Frank Strada announced his resignation earlier this month. ABC News reported that the governor's office also appointed former U.S. Attorney Ed Stanton to examine the attempt.

What happens next

According to the governor's office, Stanton's independent review will try to determine whether the execution protocol was followed. It will also consider whether more recommendations are needed to keep the protocol lawful and effective. No completion date was given in ABC News' report. Lee has not publicly responded to the request to commute Pike's sentence, according to the report.

Source: ABC News