US death‑row inmate Christa Pike says she still feels constant pain after botched execution

Christa Pike, a 50‑year‑old death‑row inmate in the United States, has issued her first public statement since the failed execution attempt in September.

In a statement released by her legal team on social media on Friday, Pike said she has “not been a moment since that night when I haven’t been in pain.” She described ongoing physical discomfort, adding that “my body hurts, my arms hurt, my hands hurt, my throat hurts” and that she still struggles to speak. Pike also said the pain extends to her mind and soul.

Pike was discharged from hospital at the end of last month after surviving two lethal injections of pentobarbital, which left her in critical condition. She has since been returned to the prison where she has served the past 30 years for the 1995 murder of Colleen Slemmer.

Legal representatives noted that Pike suffered pneumonia, significant swelling in her arms and difficulty swallowing after the botched execution. While she says she is “recovering” and “getting stronger,” she added that “healing is not the same as being okay.”

The murder was committed when Pike was 18, alongside her then‑boyfriend Tadaryl Shipp, who avoided the death penalty because he was not legally an adult at the time and remains incarcerated.

Source: BBC News. Photo: Xiaoyi / Pexels.