Christa Pike was scheduled to be executed on September 30, 2026. For the unversed, 50-year-old Christa has spent more than three decades behind bars for the 1995 killing of 19-year-old Colleen Slemmer. May Martinez, mother of Colleen, has carried the memory of her daughter Colleen Slemmer and the pain of a murder for more than thirty years and traveled from Florida to Tennessee along with her husband to witness Pike’s execution. Now, May has reacted to Christa’s failed execution.
Colleen Slemmer’s parents react to Christa Pike’s failed execution
According to reports, Tennessee Governor Bill Lee stopped all executions in the state for the rest of 2026 after Pike’s execution went wrong. Christa’s attorneys shared that she had received two doses of pentobarbital, but had not lost consciousness. Now, Colleen Slemmer’s parents, May Martinez and Raul Martinez, who drove 11 hours from Florida to Tennessee so that they could attend Pike’s execution at Riverbend Maximum Security Institution in Nashville, have reacted to her failed execution.
Speaking to PEOPLE, May mentioned that she was carefully watching Christa and was not taking her eyes off her. May shared that she wanted Christa to remember Colleen and what they did to her. For the uninitiated, Christa had been accused of luring her victim, Colleen Slemmer, to a remote area of the University of Tennessee’s agricultural campus with her then-boyfriend, Tadaryl Shipp, and their friend Shadolla Peterson. Then Colleen was killed by Christa. May said:
“I stood in front of that window, and I watched her very, very carefully. I did not take my eyes off of her. I wanted her to remember who Colleen was and what they’ve done and never forget that thought, no matter where she goes.”
After the failed execution, Pike was taken to an undisclosed hospital, and May and Raul were taken into the next room where they waited over an hour to speak with the commissioner. However, the commissioner provided them with almost no information, and they drove back to Florida.
May shared that they learned that Pike was taken to the hospital, but the commissioner told her that he did not know much about the lethal injection and whether Christa was going to be alive or dead. The couple said that they still do not understand how so many things could have gone wrong. Raul stated that it was a complete waste of time. He said:
“It sounds cruel, but how do you botch up killing somebody?”
Raul pointed out that Tennessee, unlike many other states, uses just one drug in its lethal injection as opposed to three, which is the more common method. Further, in the interview, May shared that she wants her daughter’s killer to be dead. According to May, Pike shows no signs of remorse.
May said that Christa has never apologized to her for taking her daughter’s life. She believes Pike has never shown regret for killing Colleen, even after 31 years. The failed execution has made the situation even harder for May. She is unsure whether she will ever be able to find closure.
What happened to Christa Pike after the failed execution? Here’s what we know
The failed execution took a serious toll on Christa Pike. An attorney told TMZ that Pike is critically ill but is not in a coma. She is still unconscious and unable to communicate. As Pike’s execution went wrong, Tennessee Governor Bill Lee stopped all executions in the state for the rest of 2026 and also ordered an independent investigation to find out exactly what went wrong during Christa’s execution attempt.
May justice prevail in Colleen Slemmer’s case.
Pic credit: Knoxville News Sentinel, KJCT, The New York Times
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