The Tennessee Supreme Court has scheduled the execution of Christa Pike for 10 a.m. on Wednesday, September 30, 2026, at the Riverbend Maximum Security Institution in Nashville. Pike, 50, was convicted of the 1995 murder of 19-year-old Colleen Slemmer. Her defense team has filed a 226-page clemency petition requesting that Governor Bill Lee commute her sentence to life imprisonment, citing her age at the time of the crime and a history of childhood trauma and mental illness.
Pike was 18 years old when she and her then-boyfriend, Tadaryl Shipp, then 17, killed Slemmer at the Job Corps program in Knoxville. Trial testimony indicated the group lured Slemmer to a remote location where she was beaten and cut with a box cutter and a meat cleaver. A jury sentenced Pike to death in 1996, while Shipp received a life sentence with the possibility of parole because he was a minor. If the execution proceeds, Pike will be the first woman put to death in Tennessee since 1819.
Defense attorneys argue that Pike’s trial counsel failed to present evidence of childhood abuse, including multiple rapes and parental neglect. They also cite recent diagnoses of bipolar disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder, arguing these conditions influenced her actions. The Tennessee Supreme Court and a federal appeals court have previously rejected these claims, ruling that the jury had already heard relevant testimony regarding her background and that new evidence would not have changed the verdict.
May Martinez, the mother of Colleen Slemmer, has expressed support for the execution, stating in 2021 that she wants the process to conclude so her daughter can finally rest. The Justice Coalition, a victims' rights group, has raised funds for Martinez to travel to Tennessee to witness the execution. Meanwhile, United Nations human rights experts and the Cornell Center on the Death Penalty Worldwide have called for a halt to the execution, citing international human rights standards and Pike’s vulnerability as a trauma survivor.
For the public and legal observers, the case highlights the application of the death penalty to individuals who were just reaching adulthood at the time of their crimes. Pike’s defense emphasizes neuroscientific research suggesting the human brain is not fully developed until the mid-20s, arguing for a similar standard to that used for juveniles under 18. A decision to commute the sentence would set a precedent for Governor Bill Lee, who has never granted clemency in a death penalty case. Conversely, proceeding with the execution follows the jury's original determination and the exhaustion of Pike’s formal appeals process.
What happens next: Governor Bill Lee is the final authority who can halt the execution through clemency. Observers note that in recent cases, the governor has typically announced his decision two days before a scheduled execution. For Pike, this announcement would be expected by Monday, September 28, 2026. If clemency is denied, the execution is set to occur at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, September 30. Pike has requested an all-female team for the procedure to avoid exacerbating past trauma, though the state has not guaranteed this arrangement.