Tennessee may execute first woman in more than 200 years — Jerusalem Post
In the US state of Tennessee, Christa Pike is set to be executed for the 1995 murder of 19-year-old Colleen Slemmer. According to the Jerusalem Post, if the sentence is carried out, Pike will become the first woman executed in Tennessee since 1819.
According to court records, Pike, her then-boyfriend Tadaryl Shipp, and their acquaintance Shadolla Peterson lured Slemmer to a remote part of the agricultural campus of the University of Tennessee in Knoxville. There, the young woman was tortured and killed. Pike was sentenced to death, while Shipp, who was 17 at the time of the crime, received life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.
Clemency petition
Pike's lawyers asked Tennessee Governor Bill Lee to commute her death sentence to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. The defense also appealed to the state Supreme Court and a federal court.
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Defense attorneys argue that the original proceedings failed to take into account the history of sexual and physical abuse Pike experienced in childhood and adolescence. According to the Jerusalem Post, citing the BBC, psychologist Diana McCoy determined in 1995 that Pike had been raped and abused. Pike's attorney did not call McCoy or the witnesses she recommended at trial. In 2021, Pike was diagnosed with bipolar disorder.
Complaint over the method of execution
The Tennessee Supreme Court rejected a defense complaint arguing that lethal injection would constitute cruel and unusual punishment for Pike. The lawyers cited thrombocytosis, a bone marrow disorder in which an excessive number of platelets is produced. Medical experts in the case said the condition could cause severe consequences during the execution.
Pike also asked that only women be involved in the execution procedure, explaining that this was due to the trauma she had experienced. State authorities did not guarantee that this request would be met, but said she would be transported to the prison where the execution is planned by female guards.
