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Austin Sarat, William Nelson Cromwell Professor of Jurisprudence and Political Science, Amherst College

Christa Pike survived a lethal injection attempt – the latest person to endure a failed execution

Emergency vehicles arrive at Riverbend Maximum Security Institution in Nashville, Tenn., on Sept. 30, 2026, after Christa Pike's execution was halted. AP Photo/George Walker IV

Christa Pike survived an execution attempt in Tennessee on Sept. 30, 2026, after receiving two doses of pentobarbital, a lethal drug. Gov. Bill Lee has temporarily suspended executions in the state.

Pike became the first person ever to get full doses of the drugs intended to kill her and to live nonetheless. But she is not the only person to have survived an execution failure in the Volunteer State.

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