Tennessee execution survivor Christa Pike is conscious and speaking, lawyers say

Christa Pike, the convicted killer who survived a botched lethal injection in Tennessee on September 30, has regained consciousness and is speaking, her lawyers said. Pike, 50, remains hospitalized with severe arm injuries from IV attempts. A court hearing on her case is scheduled for Wednesday.

Christa Pike, the convicted killer who survived a botched lethal injection in Tennessee on September 30, has regained consciousness and is speaking, her lawyers said in a statement on Tuesday. Pike, 50, remains hospitalized with severe injuries to her arms from the insertion of intravenous lines during the attempted execution. Her lawyers said she is "still handcuffed and shackled" to her hospital bed. A court hearing on Pike's case is scheduled for Wednesday in Davidson County Chancery Court. Pike was sentenced to death for her role as a teenager in the torture-murder of a 19-year-old schoolmate, Colleen Slemmer, three decades ago. She survived the execution attempt at Riverbend Maximum Security Institution in Nashville, becoming the first person in the United States known to have survived after execution drugs were administered. Her lawyers had previously said she remained unconscious, critically ill, and hooked to a ventilator. The botched procedure lasted roughly 2-1/2 hours, with Pike heard gasping and crying. The Department of Correction defended its handling, but Governor Bill Lee ordered a suspension of executions and a third-party review. The commissioner of the Department of Correction, Frank Strada, has resigned.