Tennessee Governor Bill Lee has denied a clemency request from death row inmate Christa Pike, who is scheduled to be executed by lethal injection on September 30. If the execution proceeds, Pike would be the first woman to be executed in Tennessee in more than 200 years.
Background
Christa Pike, now 50, was just 18 when she and her then-boyfriend brutally beat, tortured, and murdered Colleen Slemmer, a 19-year-old they met at a job training camp for troubled teens. Pike's attorneys have filed a petition with the US Supreme Court, seeking a last-minute reprieve.
Pike's execution would mark a significant moment in Tennessee's history, as she would be the first person executed in the state during the modern death penalty era who was a teenager at the time of the offense.
Governor's Statement
In a statement, Governor Lee said, "After deliberate consideration of Christa Gail Pike's request for clemency, and after a thorough review of the case, I am upholding the sentence of the State of Tennessee and do not plan to intervene."
Pike's legal team had requested that her death sentence be commuted to life in prison. They argue that moving forward with her execution raises critical questions about Tennessee's execution protocol.
