Crime & Justice
Execution of Christa Pike halted an hour before it was due
September 30, 2026 at 04:28 PM · Updated 16d ago
Coverage
6 reports · over 10 hours
BNBBC News
US Supreme Court allows execution of Christa Pike to go ahead
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BNBBC News
Watch: Why was the execution of Christa Pike temporarily halted?
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AJAl Jazeera English
US appeals court halts Tennessee execution of Christa Pike
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BNBBC News
Execution of US murderer Christa Pike halted an hour before it was due to happen
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TGThe Guardian
Tennessee halts plan to execute woman for first time in 200 years
(opens the publisher’s site)
AJAl Jazeera English
Christa Pike seeks firing squad, not lethal injection: Inside US executions
(opens the publisher’s site)A federal appeals court halted Christa Pike's execution an hour before it was due, blocking Tennessee's first execution of a woman in over 200 years.
- Judges on the Sixth Circuit Appeals court said they needed more time to consider the arguments in Pike's case, leaving the pause's length unclear.
- The Supreme Court denied a reprieve and Tennessee Governor Bill Lee declined Pike's clemency request earlier this week.
- Pike, 50, has awaited execution since her 1996 conviction for the 1995 murder of Colleen Slemmer.
- Pike's lawyers argued Tennessee's lethal injection method could cause suffering beyond what the Constitution allows.
- Tennessee officials asked the US Supreme Court to lift the Sixth Circuit's stay.
- UN experts called for Pike's death sentence to be commuted.
- Pike's lawyers cite her documented history of childhood abuse, arguing she would not receive the death penalty if tried today.
- Her lawyers noted only 18 women have been executed in the US since the 1970s, compared with 1,663 men.
- The US Supreme Court vacated the Sixth Circuit's stay, allowing Tennessee to proceed with Pike's execution, Justice Brett Kavanaugh issuing the order without explanation.