ALERT: UN Accuses Tennessee of Torturing Christa Pike After Failed Execution

The United Nations (UN) called Thursday against repeating the execution of Christa Pike, 50, the only woman on Tennessee’s death row. On September 30, a lethal injection attempt in Nashville failed to cause her death, and UN experts consider it a violation of the prohibition against torture.

The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, said in a statement that the physical and mental suffering from failed attempts is «abominable and cruel.» His office urged Tennessee authorities not to make another attempt and reiterated that «the death penalty has no place in any society.» He also questioned whether Pike received a fair trial.

Nine independent experts appointed by the UN Human Rights Council (HRC) backed the high commissioner’s call. They asked for the sentence to be commuted—replacing the death penalty with a lesser sentence, such as life imprisonment. For them, two failed attempts violate the prohibition on torture and arbitrary deprivation of life, according to a Thursday statement.

Failed Execution at Riverbend: What Happened During the Lethal Injection

September 30 accumulated more than nine hours of delays before the procedure began. A federal appeals court suspended the execution less than an hour before, and the Supreme Court lifted that suspension, according to UN News. The vote was 6 to 3 and the high court did not explain its decision.

The chamber curtains at the Riverbend maximum-security prison opened at 7:27 p.m., local time. Pike spoke her last words, sang the song I Love You So Much with her spiritual advisor, and said she felt her arm was «about to burst.» The curtains closed at 7:46 p.m., reopened three minutes later, and final closure came at 8:05 p.m.

Catherine Sweeney, a journalist with broadcaster WPLN, told the press that Pike was still breathing when witnesses were removed. She noted several times the phrase «she’s still talking» and journalists heard sounds from Pike until 8:53 p.m. Pike is in critical condition and receiving emergency medical care, according to her lawyers, who speak of «chemical torture,» Reuters reported.

Protocol, Legal Framework, and Due Process: The Legal Debate

The Tennessee Department of Corrections (TDOC) stated that it followed «every step» of the protocol approved by the Attorney General, according to CBS News. That protocol does not provide for what to do if the inmate is still alive after the second round of drugs, according to the Associated Press (AP). Governor Bill Lee, who said he was very disappointed, ordered an external review and canceled the other 2026 execution, according to WSMV.

In the United States, the Eighth Amendment to the Constitution prohibits «cruel and unusual» punishment and applies to execution methods. The Supreme Court requires that whoever challenges a method propose an available alternative. Pike’s lawyers warned before the execution that the protocol with pentobarbital, a barbiturate, could amount to torture because of her small veins, according to Democracy Now.

At the international level, the UN Convention Against Torture, ratified by the United States in 1994, prohibits cruel and inhumane treatment. The statements from the high commissioner and experts are not binding, meaning they do not obligate U.S. courts. Robin M. Maher, executive director of the Death Penalty Information Center (DPIC), called the case «singular and incomparable,» according to AP.

Executions in the U.S.: Statistics, Background, and Next Steps

The DPIC records 29 executions in 2026, through September 29. There were 47 in 2025 and 25 in 2024, nearly double. Reuters indicates that 23 states have abolished capital punishment, and the DPIC counts 56 execution dates set for 2026.

Pike, 18 at the time, was convicted of the murder of Colleen Slemmer, 19, which occurred in Knoxville in 1995, according to court records. A jury sentenced her to death in 1996; her boyfriend received life imprisonment and another young woman received probation. Her lawyers argue that the jury was unaware of her history of abuse or her mental health issues; she later received diagnoses of bipolar disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

Before the execution, Morris Tidball-Binz, UN special rapporteur on arbitrary executions, told The Times newspaper that Pike would be «a victim of torture until death.