Mother of Christa Pike's victim breaks silence after learning death row inmate is 'conscious and speaking'
The mother of the young woman murdered by death row inmate Christa Pike has spoken out after the convicted killer survived a botched execution attempt in Tennessee.
May Martinez, whose daughter Colleen Slemmer was tortured and killed by Pike in 1995, told WBIR she had a feeling the execution would not go as planned.
Now, as questions swirl over whether the state can legally attempt to execute Pike again, Martinez has broken her silence on the extraordinary case.
Asked what she wants to happen now, Martinez said: "It doesn't matter what I think, They're going to do what they're going to do."
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Pike, 50 was scheduled to be put to death by lethal injection at Riverbend Maximum Security Institution in Nashville.
She was given two doses of pentobarbital, yet she survived. She was convicted of the torture and killing of Slemmer on the University of Tennessee-Knoxville campus more than 30 years ago
Pike's lawyers, Randy Spivey and Kelly Gleason, announced on Tuesday that she is conscious and talking six days after the attempt.
They described her recovery as 'medically unprecedented' and said they expect a long road ahead. She is reportedly off a ventilator but remains in intensive care.
Dr Joel Zivot, an expert who has advised her legal team, said her progress 'bodes well' for recovery. He cautioned, however, that Pike is not out of the woods yet.
He said: "There's still a lot of bad things that can happen here, even when everyone is doing their job well."
Her attorneys also claim that her arms were left swollen, burned and blistered after staff struggled to find a vein. Spivey, who watched from the witness room, said he counted at least seven needles used on her left arm alone. Witnesses reported hearing Pike snore or choke once the drugs were given, and said her body arched upward on the gurney.
Her lawyers say she is still handcuffed and shackled to her hospital bed, despite the damage to her arms.
The question remains open as to whether the state will try and execute Pike again. Governor Bill Lee has ordered an independent review and paused all executions in the state for the rest of the year.
Tennessee Department of Correction Commissioner Frank Strada resigned over the weekend while the investigation continues.
Christopher Slobogin, a professor at Vanderbilt Law School, told WSMV4 that Pike's team could have a strong case. In his view, given how her body responded to the drugs and what she went through, another lethal injection could be challenged as a violation of the Eighth Amendment. Two other people were implicated in Slemmer's death.
Pike's then-boyfriend Tadaryl Shipp was convicted of first-degree murder and conspiracy, but he received a life sentence because he was 17 at the time.
Shadolla Peterson, who was 18, was convicted as an accessory and was later paroled after becoming a police informant.
Topics: True crime, Christa Pike
Thomas Bamford