The frantic 911 calls placed during and after Christa Pike’s failed execution have been released

Christa Pike’s execution was not the only thing that failed that night, it seems, because newly released 911 calls have demonstrated the sheer chaos of the incident. 

Over 30 years after she killed a young woman alongside her boyfriend and friend, Christa Pike, now 50, was supposed to be executed by way of lethal injection. As we know, she took two doses and was still alive, with witnesses describing her “snoring.” Though she’s now back in Debra K. Johnson Rehabilitation Centre, she’d spent 10 days receiving life-saving care. 

The Associated Press managed to get hold of the 911 transcripts through an information request, but the audio was not released due to state law. The very first 911 call was placed at 8:40 pm, around one hour after the lethal injections began. 

Christa Pike’s victim, Colleen Slemmer. Credit: Channel 10

“We’ve been carrying out an execution tonight. We’ve administered 10 grams of pentobarbital. The person is not yet deceased,” the caller said. 

The caller was unable to give the correct verification code, and upon dispatchers calling the prison’s Central Control, they were told no such call took place. This was at around 9:07 pm, with the officials saying they “would have been the ones to call in” and they “did not make that call.”

“Per supervisors here at the DEC (Department of Emergency Communications) we have been informed it is a false call,” one dispatcher said. “There is no medical assistance needed at Riverbend Prison.”

A few minutes after that, one of the first responders outside of the prison said there was someone demanding they come in. 

“Somebody is outside the gate at the prison telling us that it’s real and demanding us to go in. They say they are some sort of state official. I need somebody to get out to the gate and talk to those people,” they said. 

Kelly Gleason, one of Christa’s lawyers, also called 911 at this time, explaining: “My client, Christa Gail Pike, is undergoing a state execution. She has completed the stages of the protocol and last we knew from the attorney who is present, she is still alive and breathing and needs immediate life-saving care.”

It was not until 9:11 pm, 30 minutes after the initial call, that dispatchers confirmed the validity of the claims. The first responders were then permitted to enter the prison. 

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At 9:34 pm, as first responders were transporting Christa to the hospital, one asked dispatch to make sure the prison knew where they were taking her.

“Just ’cause there’s been so much other confusion, I want to make sure they are aware of this,” they said. 

An update on Christa Pike after the 911 calls were released

Credit: Tennessee Department of Correction

Christa Pike is currently in the care of Debra K. Johnson Rehabilitation Centre, where she has been for the past 30 years. It’s not clear if she has fully recovered from the botched execution attempt, but she was discharged from the hospital’s medical care. 

“Where am I and who are you?” she said upon waking up.

This week, people learned that Christa has access to the outside world using a prison-issued tablet. 

She sent the following message to her friend this week: “I’m at the prison. I love you so much!”

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Featured image credit: Tennessee Department of Correction