After more than three decades on Tennessee’s death row, Christa Pike is scheduled to be executed by lethal injection on September 30, 2026. The Tennessee Department of Correction says the execution is scheduled for 10:00 a.m. CDT at Riverbend Maximum Security Institution. Pike was convicted in the 1995 murder of Colleen Slemmer and has remained on death row since her conviction.

Lethal injection is designed to cause death through drugs administered intravenously. Protocols vary by state, but traditional three-drug procedures generally involve a sedative or anesthetic, followed by a drug that causes paralysis and another intended to stop the heart. Because the person is supposed to become unconscious first, describing exactly what an individual experiences is difficult, particularly because accounts can differ when an execution does not proceed as intended.

The method has also faced controversy because some executions have involved serious complications. The Death Penalty Information Center reports that, historically, lethal injection has had a higher documented rate of botched executions than other commonly used methods. In May 2026, Tennessee’s attempted execution of Tony Carruthers was halted after officials were unable to establish the required intravenous access, with the state ultimately granting him a one-year reprieve.

Pike’s scheduled execution therefore comes amid renewed attention to Tennessee’s lethal-injection procedures. The state has continued preparing for the September 30 execution, including selecting official media witnesses and issuing detailed guidelines for coverage. Whether the execution proceeds as scheduled remains a matter for the courts and Tennessee authorities.