TENNESSEE— Christa Gail Pike became one of the most closely watched women on Tennessee’s death row after being convicted of the 1995 murder of 19-year-old Colleen Slemmer, a fellow Job Corps student in Knoxville.
Pike was 18 years old when Slemmer was killed.
But the 1995 murder was not the only violent offense for which Pike was convicted.
While incarcerated, Pike was also convicted of attempted first-degree premeditated murder for an August 2001 attack on another female inmate.
The Murder of Colleen Slemmer
On January 12, 1995, Pike, her boyfriend Tadaryl Shipp, and another young woman lured Slemmer to a secluded area of the University of Tennessee Agricultural campus in Knoxville.
According to the evidence presented at trial, Slemmer was attacked and beaten.
Pike cut Slemmer with a weapon, struck her repeatedly, and ultimately crushed her skull with a piece of asphalt.
The Tennessee Supreme Court later summarized evidence that Pike had previously told another student that she intended to kill Slemmer.
The court also noted evidence that Pike had carved a pentagram into Slemmer’s body and that Pike had taken a piece of Slemmer’s skull after the killing.
The prosecution presented the murder as premeditated.
Pike and Shipp were ultimately convicted in connection with Slemmer’s death.
In March 1996, Pike was convicted of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit first-degree murder.
She was sentenced to death for the murder and received a consecutive 25-year sentence for conspiracy.
The 2001 Attempted Murder
On August 24, 2001, while incarcerated at the Tennessee Prison for Women, Pike became involved in a confrontation with fellow inmate Patricia Jones.
A fire had resulted in several inmates being moved from their cells into a recreation area.
A dispute developed between
Jones and another inmate,
Natasha Cornett.
Pike intervened and choked Jones into unconsciousness using a heavy shoe or boot lace.
Prosecutors argued that the attack was not simply an impulsive fight but a premeditated attempt to kill Jones.
The case became especially significant because prosecutors presented evidence that Pike had deliberately prepared for the attack.
Pike was subsequently prosecuted for attempted first-degree premeditated murder.
She was convicted and sentenced to 25 years in prison, to run concurrently with her existing death sentence.
The Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals later affirmed that conviction.
The appellate record states that Pike argued she had been acting in defense of another inmate.
The court rejected her challenge to the sufficiency of the evidence and upheld the conviction.
Pike’s Death Sentence
Pike remained on Tennessee’s death row for decades while her case went through multiple levels of appeals.
In 2025, the Tennessee Supreme Court set her execution for September 30, 2026.
On September 30, 2026, the U.S. Supreme Court allowed Tennessee to proceed after a lower federal appeals court had issued a temporary stay.
Tennessee then attempted to execute Pike by lethal injection.
Pike was transported to an outside medical facility following the execution attempt.
As of October 3, 2026, reporting from Reuters and other outlets states that Pike survived the lethal-injection attempt and remains critically ill following complications during the procedure.
Her attorneys have described serious injuries to both arms and have sought preservation of evidence concerning the execution attempt.
Pike’s case has continued to receive national attention because of the brutality of the 1995 murder and the unprecedented circumstances surrounding Tennessee’s 2026 attempt to execute her.
