Credit: Tennessee Department Of Corrections
Attorney For Death Row Woman Set To Be First Executed For 200 Years By US State Makes Special Request
The attorney representing the first woman set to be executed on death row in Tennessee in 200 years has made a special request.
Christa Gail Pike was just 18 years old when she was convicted of murdering her fellow Job Corps student, 19-year-old Colleen Slemmer, in January 1995.
Alongside her then-boyfriend, Tadaryl Shipp, and friend Shadolla Peterson, Pike persuaded Slemmer to meet her in a secluded wooded area outside Knoxville under the pretense of resolving a dispute over a boy.
Instead, prosecutors said Slemmer was ambushed and subjected to a horrific attack before being stabbed, beaten, and killed.
A historic execution approaches
More than three decades after the murder, Tennessee has scheduled Pike’s execution for September 30, 2026.
Now 49, Pike is the only woman currently housed on Tennessee’s death row. If the execution proceeds, she will become the first woman executed in the state since 1820 and only the fourth woman ever put to death in Tennessee.
According to records from the Death Penalty Information Center, the last woman executed in the state was Martin Eve, who was hanged in 1820 after being convicted as an accessory to murder.
Female executions remain exceptionally uncommon across the United States. Although women account for a higher percentage of homicide convictions, they represent only around 2% of inmates on death row nationwide.
The murder that shocked Tennessee
At the time of the killing, Pike was attending the Knoxville Job Corps, a federally funded training program that helps young adults develop career skills.
Prosecutors alleged that Pike became intensely jealous after beginning a relationship with 17-year-old Tadaryl Shipp, believing Slemmer had romantic feelings for him.
On January 12, 1995, Pike, Shipp, and Peterson allegedly convinced Slemmer to accompany them to a wooded area near the University of Tennessee’s agricultural campus.
Court evidence described an exceptionally violent attack. Prosecutors said Pike slashed Slemmer’s throat with a box cutter, struck her with a meat cleaver, carved a pentagram into her chest, and ultimately crushed her skull using a piece of asphalt.
Investigators also alleged Pike kept part of the victim’s skull as a trophy and later displayed it to classmates while bragging about the killing.
In 1996, a jury convicted Pike of first-degree murder and sentenced her to death, making her the youngest woman in the United States at that time to receive a death sentence.
Shipp was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole, while Peterson received probation after cooperating with investigators and testifying during the trial.
Years of appeals and renewed debate
Pike’s incarceration has remained controversial for reasons beyond her original conviction.
In 2004, she was convicted of attempting to strangle another inmate during a prison altercation, resulting in an additional 25-year prison sentence.
Since receiving the death penalty, her attorneys have spent decades challenging the sentence through both state and federal courts, arguing that carrying out the execution would violate constitutional protections.
Her legal team says several mitigating factors were never fully considered, including her age at the time of the crime, years of severe childhood abuse, and significant mental health conditions that were not diagnosed until long after her conviction.
According to her attorneys, Pike experienced prolonged physical and s**ual abuse as well as neglect while growing up. They also say she was not diagnosed with bipolar disorder or post-traumatic stress disorder until years later, arguing those untreated conditions should have played a greater role during her defense.
Meanwhile, Tennessee resumed executions after a multi-year suspension prompted by concerns that drugs used in lethal injections had not been properly tested for purity and potency.
Pike’s scheduled execution has reignited debate over capital punishment.
Supporters argue the extraordinary brutality of the crime justifies the death sentence, pointing to both the calculated nature of the murder and Pike’s later prison violence as evidence she remains dangerous.
Critics, however, believe executing someone for a crime committed at age 18, particularly someone with severe childhood trauma and mental illness, is inconsistent with modern standards of justice.
In a statement to USA Today, Pike’s attorneys said: “Christa’s childhood was fraught with years of physical and s**ual abuse and neglect … With time and treatment for bipolar and post-traumatic stress disorders, which were not diagnosed until years later, Christa has become a thoughtful woman with deep remorse for her crime.”
They argue Pike today bears little resemblance to the troubled teenager convicted in 1995 and say she has shown genuine remorse throughout her nearly 30 years on death row.
Unless her remaining legal appeals succeed or Tennessee’s governor grants clemency, Pike is expected to become the first woman executed in Tennessee in more than 200 years.
Pike’s attorney makes special request
With the execution date looming, Pike’s attorney Stephen Ferrell has made a special request after claiming she could face a ‘torturous execution’.
It comes after the harrowing recent incident which saw Tennessee death row inmate Tony Carruthers surviving a botched lethal injection on May 21.
The inmate was given a one year reprieve by Tennessee Governor Bill Lee after prison staff were unable to establish the required backup IV line.
Now, in a press statement, Ferrell has warned that Pike’s medical vulnerabilities, including ‘small veins’ and thrombocytopenia, a blood disorder which can lead to excessive bleeding, she may be unfit for the lethal injection.
He said her veins ‘make the insertion of a needle difficult, even for the most trained medical professionals,’ warning that ‘the difficulty establishing IV lines is a known complication that has caused prolonged and botched executions for years.’
Ferrell went on to claim the killer’s condition could end in ‘a bloody froth in her lungs that would amount to drowning.’
“Since the state released the 2025 execution protocol, defense counsel, medical experts, and advocates have warned that the lack of clarity on any number of issues would result in a torturous execution,” he concluded.
Ferrell’s request comes hot on the heels of federal defenders calling for the state to temporarily halt executions in Tennessee.
Related Article: Death Row Inmate’s Chilling Plea After Finding Out She Will Be First Woman Executed By US State In 200 Years
Related Article: Chilling Reason Why Inmate Claims She Shouldn’t Be Put To Death As US State Prepares To Execute First Woman In Over 200 Years
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