Latest / Legally Brunette / Legally Brunette: Christa Pike Updates

Transcript

Legally Brunette: Christa Pike Updates · Legally Brunette

0:01
Speaker 1: Hi guys, welcome to an episode of Legally Brunette. I'll
0:04
Speaker 1: be your host today, Emily Simpson and... Shane. Okay, so
0:08
Speaker 1: today we're going to talk about, we're going to do
0:11
Speaker 1: an update on Krista Pike. A few weeks ago, we
0:14
Speaker 1: did a full episode on Krista Pike because her name
0:16
Speaker 1: had come up in the news and I had been
0:19
Speaker 1: reading articles on how she was going to be executed.
0:22
Speaker 1: She had been on death row for many years, since
0:24
Speaker 1: the 90s. And so I wanted to do a full
0:26
Speaker 1: episode on her because there was a little chatter about
0:29
Speaker 1: how she was on... death row in Tennessee, but she
0:32
Speaker 1: was going to be executed. So anyway, if you haven't
0:34
Speaker 1: listened to our episode on Krista Pike, I would suggest
0:37
Speaker 1: you go back and listen to it because it gives
0:38
Speaker 1: a full account of the actual murder of Colleen Slimmer
0:44
Speaker 1: and all the details of it and then trial and
0:47
Speaker 1: her ending up on death row. Anyway, Pike was one
0:50
Speaker 1: of three people. Let's just go back through the case
0:52
Speaker 1: a little bit just to do a little refresher for
0:54
Speaker 1: people that don't know exactly what happened. But Pike was
0:57
Speaker 1: one of three people that were convicted in the 1995
1:00
Speaker 1: murder of Colleen Slimmer, often called the Job Corps murder.
1:04
Speaker 1: And she was prosecuted alongside her then boyfriend to Daryl
1:08
Speaker 1: Ship and Shadola Peterson. Slimmer, this is Colleen Slimmer, was
1:12
Speaker 1: stabbed and beaten on the University of Tennessee's agricultural campus.
1:16
Speaker 1: A pentagram was carved into her chest. And investigators said
1:20
Speaker 1: that Krista Pike kept a piece of the victim's skull
1:24
Speaker 1: as a souvenir. Do you remember that part about keeping
1:26
Speaker 1: the skull? I think she kept it in her pocket
1:29
Speaker 1: and then showed some people after the murder took place.
1:34
Speaker 1: Pike was 18 at the time. A jury convicted her
1:37
Speaker 1: of first-degree murder in 1996 and sentenced her to death.
1:42
Speaker 1: To Daryl Shipp received life with the possibility of parole later.
1:46
Speaker 1: while the third participant testified against Pike and ended up
1:50
Speaker 1: with probation. Krista Pike was the only woman on Tennessee's
1:54
Speaker 1: death row and her execution would have been the first
1:56
Speaker 1: of a woman in Tennessee since 1820. All right, so
2:01
Speaker 1: she was scheduled to and we did some updates on
2:04
Speaker 1: her previously because her legal team had tried many times.
2:09
Speaker 1: to stop the execution, but also to change the execution.
2:12
Speaker 1: Do you remember that they were arguing that she should
2:14
Speaker 1: not be killed by lethal injection because she had some,
2:17
Speaker 1: I don't know, some type of blood issues or like
2:19
Speaker 1: she had small veins and they were saying that that
2:21
Speaker 1: would be cruel and unusual punishment for her specifically. I
2:24
Speaker 1: believe she even asked to be hung as opposed to
2:27
Speaker 1: lethal injection. So then on September 30th of 2026, this
2:31
Speaker 1: is the date that she was scheduled to be executed
2:35
Speaker 1: by lethal injection and I read this morning, there is
2:38
Speaker 1: an actual summary of someone she was a part of
2:41
Speaker 1: the media that was actually at the execution that day.
2:44
Speaker 1: And she gives a very detailed account of what happened.
2:48
Speaker 1: All right, so we get to Tennessee's death chamber. There's
2:50
Speaker 1: a black curtain that always stays closed while workers insert
2:53
Speaker 1: the IV lines. The curtain keeps their identities hidden as
2:57
Speaker 1: state law requires. I don't know, did you know that?
2:59
Speaker 1: I didn't know that when I was reading that about
3:00
Speaker 1: this step-by-step process in the death chamber. They actually pull
3:03
Speaker 1: these black curtains across because whatever the medical team is
3:07
Speaker 1: there that is inserting the IV, they shield them from
3:11
Speaker 1: the public watching. So their identities are not known.
3:15
Speaker 2: It's so like, Well, they make it creepy.
3:17
Speaker 1: They make it creepy with the black curtains and they
3:19
Speaker 1: shield their identities. And I guess, I mean, maybe part
3:23
Speaker 1: of the reason that they're.
3:24
Speaker 2: Well, a firing squad. Do you know how a firing
3:25
Speaker 2: squad works? I read.
3:27
Speaker 1: It depends on the state. Sure. But that when they
3:30
Speaker 1: use a firing squad, a lot of times the states
3:31
Speaker 1: have someone that has a, not a real bullet. So
3:35
Speaker 1: that everyone can kind of psychologically walk away with thinking
3:38
Speaker 1: maybe it wasn't my bullet that killed them. Is that
3:40
Speaker 1: what you were talking about?
3:41
Speaker 2: Yeah, I think sometimes it might be they all but one.
3:44
Speaker 2: Like there's only one bullet. And then sometimes they do
3:47
Speaker 2: it where one bullet is just a shell or a
3:49
Speaker 2: casing or a fake bullet. Right.
3:53
Speaker 1: But the reason is so psychologically the people of the
3:56
Speaker 1: firing squad can psychologically say, well, it might not have
4:01
Speaker 1: been my bullet.
4:03
Speaker 2: I'm all for the firing squad.
4:05
Speaker 1: Yes.
4:06
Speaker 2: But it's like... You pointed a gun and you put
4:09
Speaker 2: a bullet and you pointed a gun at someone like
4:11
Speaker 2: you're willing to kill them. So I don't know how
4:13
Speaker 2: it really alleviates it. But if it does for them,
4:15
Speaker 2: then that's fine.
4:16
Speaker 1: I don't know. All right. The procedures are set out
4:18
Speaker 1: in a protocol. The Department of Correction writes for itself
4:21
Speaker 1: with no other regulation governing executions. Media outlets have sued
4:26
Speaker 1: over the secrecy, noting that botched executions often stem from
4:30
Speaker 1: problems at the IV stage. The American Medical Association forbids
4:35
Speaker 1: doctors from taking part in executions, and only the prisoner's
4:40
Speaker 1: attorney and spiritual advisor are present during the IV placement. Attorneys'
4:45
Speaker 1: accounts are usually the only record of that step because
4:48
Speaker 1: it's hidden away. It's very secret. All right, at Krista
4:52
Speaker 1: Pike's execution, witnesses waited about 45 minutes with the curtain closed.
4:56
Speaker 1: This is far longer than the usual 10 to 15 minutes,
4:59
Speaker 1: and they could not see the chamber clock. Except for
5:02
Speaker 1: that one night that I didn't express any love. Or
5:03
Speaker 1: that other time in prison when I tried to strangle
5:06
Speaker 1: that woman. Don't judge me on one day. Yeah. Then
5:08
Speaker 1: she spoke with her Buddhist spiritual advisor. She soon said
5:27
Speaker 1: that her arm was burning in one spot, which the
5:30
Speaker 1: reporter notes is unlikely if the drug is properly delivered
5:33
Speaker 1: into a vein, which I was thinking the same thing.
5:35
Speaker 1: If she's talking about how it's burning in one spot,
5:37
Speaker 1: that would mean that it's outside of the vein and
5:39
Speaker 1: it's spilling over into her.
5:41
Speaker 2: Yeah, she could have just said that.
5:43
Speaker 1: What do you mean? She's just making it up.
5:47
Speaker 2: She's not a very credible person. She has a history of.
5:53
Speaker 2: Lying?
5:55
Speaker 1: Murder?
5:57
Speaker 2: It's possible the medical team botched it up because they're
6:02
Speaker 2: opposed to the death penalty.
6:04
Speaker 1: Oh, you think the medical team was infiltrated by people
6:09
Speaker 1: that are anti-death penalty and then they botched it on purpose?
6:13
Speaker 2: I'm saying it's possible. And I'm saying it's quite possible.
6:16
Speaker 2: And I don't think it's a stretch.
6:17
Speaker 1: Well, I mean, maybe it's not a stretch considering that
6:20
Speaker 1: the execution they tried to do in Tennessee prior to
6:23
Speaker 1: Krista Pike was also botched as well.
6:24
Speaker 2: Right. That's what made me think that.
6:25
Speaker 1: Okay, this is my other.
6:26
Speaker 2: So they're the same team?
6:28
Speaker 1: I don't know. We should confirm that at some point,
6:30
Speaker 1: whether it's... They hide their identities. I don't know. Maybe
6:34
Speaker 1: it was the same team.
6:35
Speaker 2: I have no idea. Maybe they don't get paid enough.
6:36
Speaker 2: They're like, this is not worth it. Yeah. So they
6:39
Speaker 2: don't pay attention.
6:40
Speaker 1: Here's my thought, and I don't know, maybe this is
6:42
Speaker 1: just a simplistic thought, but when.
6:47
Speaker 1: When I had to euthanize my dog, and also when
6:50
Speaker 1: I was growing up, we had horses. And I remember
6:52
Speaker 1: a vet came. We had a stallion. He got very,
6:54
Speaker 1: very old. He had to be put to sleep. The vet,
6:56
Speaker 1: this isn't a thousand.
6:57
Speaker 2: How do they put a horse to sleep? They inject it?
7:00
Speaker 1: Yes, but this isn't a thousand pound animal. And I remember.
7:03
Speaker 2: I remember you said your boyfriend like had a bobcat
7:05
Speaker 2: or something, like dug a hole.
7:06
Speaker 1: That was a different horse.
7:07
Speaker 2: Well, it's a horse.
7:08
Speaker 1: Yes, that was my pony. Anyway, I'm saying the vet
7:11
Speaker 1: comes out, and he gave the horse a shot. And
7:17
Speaker 1: then we walked him in a circle as he got
7:20
Speaker 1: drowsier and drowsier. And then he laid down. And it
7:24
Speaker 1: was very peaceful, and it was very calm. And then
7:28
Speaker 1: he passed away.
7:28
Speaker 2: And you were with him.
7:30
Speaker 1: Yeah. My mom was there, and my sister, and me.
7:31
Speaker 1: And I'm saying this is a 1,000-pound animal. And then
7:34
Speaker 1: we buried him in the orchard in Ohio, where I
7:37
Speaker 1: used to live. And we did the same with my
7:39
Speaker 1: pony when he died. And then when I had to
7:43
Speaker 1: fisk her, my dog, for 12 years, we had to
7:46
Speaker 1: have him euthanized. I take him to the vet.
7:47
Speaker 2: Well, that was a very rushed moment, too, because he
7:50
Speaker 2: was having illnesses.
7:51
Speaker 1: He was having seizures.
7:52
Speaker 2: So it couldn't have been planned as opposed to.
7:54
Speaker 1: No, but my point is.
7:56
Speaker 1: It seems, based upon my own experience, that it's very
8:00
Speaker 1: simple to give a shot to someone. I know.
8:03
Speaker 2: That's why I think it was botched.
8:05
Speaker 1: That dies peacefully.
8:06
Speaker 2: And a physician, no less. But here's the thing. I
8:09
Speaker 2: bet you a million times she had IVs and medical treatment,
8:14
Speaker 2: all kinds of stuff for those three decades. And now
8:17
Speaker 2: that there's this, all of a sudden it's like, oh,
8:19
Speaker 2: I can't handle it.
8:28
Speaker 1: Let's go back to the actual day. Krista said her
8:31
Speaker 1: arm was burning in one spot, which the reporter notes
8:33
Speaker 1: is unlikely if the drug is properly delivered into a vein.
8:37
Speaker 1: She showed no signs of sedation, even after staff signaled
8:40
Speaker 1: the drugs had finished flowing. Okay, this is another thing
8:43
Speaker 1: I did not know. Did you know this? So once
8:47
Speaker 1: all of the fluid has entered the body and she's
8:50
Speaker 1: supposed to be dead at this point, they put a rock,
8:55
Speaker 1: there's a platform, And they place a rock out on
8:57
Speaker 1: the platform so that the witnesses know that she's supposed
9:00
Speaker 1: to be dead at this point. I had no idea
9:02
Speaker 1: about that. Did you know that?
9:04
Speaker 2: Why can't they just do like a thumbs up or something?
9:05
Speaker 1: They don't. They don't do a thumbs up, Shane. I
9:07
Speaker 1: don't know why. I mean, I guess someone could just
9:10
Speaker 1: do this, but they don't. They place a rock out there.
9:13
Speaker 1: So once the rock is placed out there, then that's
9:15
Speaker 1: supposed to signal to the people watching that that.
9:19
Speaker 2: It's confirmed that she's dead.
9:20
Speaker 1: Yes, except this reporter that was there, this firsthand account
9:24
Speaker 1: says that they put the rock out to signal that
9:27
Speaker 1: she was demised, dead, whatever. But they could hear her
9:31
Speaker 1: snoring because there's a microphone in the chamber. So she
9:34
Speaker 1: was snoring loudly. So they were all confused as to
9:38
Speaker 1: this confirmation of her death, yet she's snoring loudly on
9:43
Speaker 1: a microphone that they can hear. So she's clearly dead.
9:45
Speaker 1: not dead at this point. Her spiritual advisor was called
9:49
Speaker 1: back into the chamber as staff administered a second round
9:53
Speaker 1: of pentobarbital. That's the drug that they gave her, pentobarbital.
9:59
Speaker 1: Pike eventually began snoring. I think she began snoring again.
10:02
Speaker 1: And then this is after the curtain closed. The protocol
10:06
Speaker 1: has no provisions for a second dose failing. So I
10:11
Speaker 1: guess they, according to protocol, if the first dose fails,
10:14
Speaker 1: then according to this written protocol that they have for
10:16
Speaker 1: execution of someone, they can administer a second dose. So
10:20
Speaker 1: they administered a second dose to her. So she had
10:23
Speaker 1: two doses of a lethal cocktail and neither one of
10:27
Speaker 1: them killed her. I guess my thought would be they
10:31
Speaker 1: administered the IV incorrectly. Was it both times or only
10:34
Speaker 1: the first time? Or did they remove the IV and
10:36
Speaker 1: then the second time they tried to put it in again?
10:38
Speaker 1: Or did they leave it in the whole time? And
10:41
Speaker 1: it's just not in the right place. So this cocktail
10:44
Speaker 1: of chemicals isn't going into her veins, into her bloodstream.
10:47
Speaker 1: It's just spreading through her body.
10:50
Speaker 2: But it's not enough to kill her?
10:52
Speaker 1: It's enough to have an ambulance rush her to the hospital,
10:55
Speaker 1: and she's in critical condition, but she's not dead. So
10:59
Speaker 1: she got two lethal doses, I would believe, not into
11:02
Speaker 1: her veins, but just into her body.
11:04
Speaker 2: Well, they're not lethal doses. Well, yeah. Or I guess
11:06
Speaker 2: the way they were administered, they weren't lethal. Right. Is
11:09
Speaker 2: this grounds for a malpractice suit?
11:11
Speaker 1: I don't know.
11:12
Speaker 2: Like they had a certain expectation, a certain outcome.
11:15
Speaker 1: But I guess for it to be malpractice.
11:16
Speaker 2: The doctor didn't live up to it.
11:18
Speaker 1: There had to be a doctor. And I don't know
11:19
Speaker 1: if there was a doctor present because we don't know
11:21
Speaker 1: who the medical team was. Medical team.
11:24
Speaker 2: I don't know.
11:25
Speaker 1: I don't know either. So like I said, there's no
11:29
Speaker 1: provisions in this protocol after a second dose. Then it's
11:33
Speaker 1: like they don't know what to do, right? Because the
11:35
Speaker 1: second dose doesn't work. There's no further instructions as to
11:37
Speaker 1: what to do if a second dose doesn't work. They
11:40
Speaker 1: listened to her snore over the loudspeaker for nearly 40 minutes.
11:45
Speaker 2: Well, why were they there for 40 minutes? What were
11:47
Speaker 2: they doing for 40 minutes?
11:48
Speaker 1: Well, they were waiting because they weren't dismissed. So they're
11:50
Speaker 1: just all in this room.
11:51
Speaker 2: What's happening during the 40 minutes besides the snoring?
11:54
Speaker 1: Nothing.
11:55
Speaker 2: They're just watching her sleep?
11:56
Speaker 1: Well, I believe they placed the rock out twice after
12:00
Speaker 1: the second dose was given. I think they put the
12:02
Speaker 1: rock out again to signal.
12:03
Speaker 2: Oh, wait, never mind. They took the rock?
12:04
Speaker 1: And then they're just like, meh.
12:06
Speaker 2: Yeah. It's a very sophisticated method.
12:08
Speaker 1: Yeah, it seems so hard.
12:09
Speaker 2: I have a lot of trust in the system here.
12:11
Speaker 2: We use this rock that we found outside as a
12:15
Speaker 2: way of conveying to everyone that she's dead.
12:16
Speaker 1: Right.
12:17
Speaker 2: What time of day do they do this? Do they
12:19
Speaker 2: do it at like midnight?
12:20
Speaker 1: I don't know.
12:21
Speaker 2: That's always another weird thing.
12:22
Speaker 1: Yeah, they'll do it like two in the morning or something.
12:24
Speaker 2: They want to wait until the kids go to sleep
12:25
Speaker 2: or something?
12:25
Speaker 1: I don't know. Uh, finally media witnesses were asked to leave. Um,
12:30
Speaker 1: she also said that like on her way out, as
12:32
Speaker 1: they were leaving, they saw, she saw a whole row
12:35
Speaker 1: of ambulances start coming in. So I guess that was
12:38
Speaker 1: when they were like, I don't, we don't know what
12:39
Speaker 1: to do. So do we just, I guess we just
12:41
Speaker 1: send her to the hospital now. So she ended up
12:45
Speaker 1: being taken to a hospital.
12:46
Speaker 2: Hmm.
12:48
Speaker 1: And that's where she is now. She's in critical condition
12:50
Speaker 1: in a hospital. And you know what? Because there's no
12:53
Speaker 1: protocol for this, I'm sure they're all just like, I'm
12:55
Speaker 1: sure no one knows what to do. I know the
12:57
Speaker 1: governor of Tennessee said no more executions for the rest
13:00
Speaker 1: of the year because clearly they don't know what they're doing.
13:03
Speaker 2: Just the rest of the year.
13:04
Speaker 1: Just the rest of the year.
13:05
Speaker 2: It's a bad 2026. Yeah. We'll start over in 2027.
13:16
Speaker 1: So a Nashville judge has told Tennessee officials to keep
13:20
Speaker 1: everything that was physically present in the death chamber during
13:23
Speaker 1: last week's failed attempt to execute Krista Pike. That includes
13:27
Speaker 1: the drugs, IV lines, and tubing. Look, I know the
13:30
Speaker 1: judge has ordered it, but I mean, are all those
13:33
Speaker 1: things still existing? I mean, I know she's saying, hold
13:35
Speaker 1: on to evidence. We want to be able to look
13:37
Speaker 1: at everything or examine everything. But I can't imagine, like,
13:40
Speaker 1: once they put the IV in, are they not just
13:42
Speaker 1: throwing stuff into the trash and discarding it?
13:44
Speaker 2: Then they put in that little red... Right. Plastic thing
13:47
Speaker 2: where you put syringes and stuff. Yeah, that hazard waste disposal.
13:51
Speaker 1: I can't imagine they're still holding on to everything. Because,
13:54
Speaker 1: I mean, she ordered them to hold on to everything, but.
13:55
Speaker 2: This is days later. Well, they announced that she's dead.
13:58
Speaker 2: So why would they preserve anything at that point?
14:01
Speaker 1: Well.
14:01
Speaker 2: And then they later learned she's not dead because she's sleeping. Right.
14:05
Speaker 2: Just snoring or whatever.
14:07
Speaker 1: So Krista Pike was on a ventilator until Tuesday, October
14:10
Speaker 1: 6th when she woke up. Her lawyers say she now
14:13
Speaker 1: has pneumonia and a blood clot and her arms are
14:16
Speaker 1: badly injured. Attorney Randy Spivey said that Krista is confused
14:21
Speaker 1: and angry. She's asked what happened and has asked about
14:24
Speaker 1: her legal team and the victim's family. I can't imagine.
14:28
Speaker 1: What is she asking about the victim's family? Like, were
14:31
Speaker 1: they there? Did they see what happened? Do they know
14:32
Speaker 1: I'm alive?
14:33
Speaker 2: I don't know. Are they okay? She probably wanted to
14:36
Speaker 2: know if they were upset, like if they're chanting, you know.
14:40
Speaker 1: Kill her again or something. He also said it is
14:43
Speaker 1: unclear whether she will regain complete use of her arms,
14:46
Speaker 1: adding her hands look like if you were to blow
14:49
Speaker 1: up a surgical glove. I guess they're swollen.
14:52
Speaker 2: You know, it's too bad, so sad. It's like, didn't
14:55
Speaker 2: she bash someone's skull in and carry a piece around?
14:58
Speaker 2: I mean, she didn't. Yes. I mean, I'm not saying
15:01
Speaker 2: be inhumane and torture, but it's like, oh, okay, I'm sorry.
15:04
Speaker 2: There's some discomfort with dying. There's some discomfort with the
15:08
Speaker 2: death penalty. There's some pain even.
15:11
Speaker 1: Well, also, I feel as if all of this buzz everywhere,
15:16
Speaker 1: because now everyone knows Krista Pike's name. The problem is
15:19
Speaker 1: with everything that is out there now, no one knows
15:23
Speaker 1: the actual facts of the case. You know, there's not
15:25
Speaker 1: very few people that are learning all about this Krista
15:28
Speaker 1: Pike case and this Krista Pike situation.
15:30
Speaker 2: I mean, everyone just knows kind of the hot issue,
15:32
Speaker 2: which is like first female in a long time and
15:35
Speaker 2: she didn't die. And she didn't die.
15:37
Speaker 1: And I think that.
15:38
Speaker 2: And she had made a deal with the devil.
15:40
Speaker 1: Well, that's right. That's your... Yeah. But I'm saying the
15:43
Speaker 1: actual crime that she committed that put her on death
15:46
Speaker 1: row in the first place has now been overshadowed by
15:49
Speaker 1: the fact that she had two lethal injections and didn't die.
15:51
Speaker 1: And now she's up and walking around and everybody's talking about,
15:54
Speaker 1: there's no precedent for this. So nobody knows what to do.
15:57
Speaker 1: And that's just, all of this is now overshadowing the
16:01
Speaker 1: actual victim and the victim's family. You know, the victim's
16:04
Speaker 1: family traveled all the way there.
16:06
Speaker 2: Yeah, isn't there supposed to be like some closure on,
16:08
Speaker 2: you know, when this happens, right? I mean, to each
16:11
Speaker 2: their own, but to some degree. And now it's just
16:13
Speaker 2: like prolonging it, making it all in the news. And
16:16
Speaker 2: it's just like, It's like throwing fuel on a little flame,
16:20
Speaker 2: and now it's just all over the place instead of
16:22
Speaker 2: extinguishing it.
16:23
Speaker 1: On Thursday, October 8th, Pike is now up and walking
16:28
Speaker 1: in the hospital, according to her legal team. What did
16:31
Speaker 1: you say when you heard she was up and walking?
16:33
Speaker 2: I don't remember what I said.
16:35
Speaker 1: You said she should walk back to the death chamber. Oh, yeah.
16:37
Speaker 2: She should.
16:39
Speaker 1: If she's up and walking, she should walk back.
16:43
Speaker 2: Get back to your job and finish it.
16:45
Speaker 1: At the recent hearing, Pike's team accused the state of
16:48
Speaker 1: hiding evidence. Attorney Luke Einan argued that the materials matter
16:52
Speaker 1: for future legal challenges because the state has not ruled
16:56
Speaker 1: out trying to execute her again. So basically, he's the
16:59
Speaker 1: one that's leading the way on saying you need to
17:00
Speaker 1: preserve all this evidence. Also, I just want to bring
17:03
Speaker 1: up that I just read an article this morning. Texas
17:06
Speaker 1: executed a man on death row by lethal injection. No problems.
17:12
Speaker 2: Probably happens all the time in Texas.
17:14
Speaker 1: He's no longer with us. Yeah. And it was the same.
17:17
Speaker 1: It was pentobarbital or whatever that chemical concoction is.
17:20
Speaker 2: But I'm telling you, there's something sketchy going on in Tennessee.
17:23
Speaker 1: That it doesn't work. I don't understand. They need to
17:26
Speaker 1: fly in the Texas team because that team knows what
17:29
Speaker 1: it's doing. Right.
17:30
Speaker 2: Or they can just do it remotely. remotely there's like
17:33
Speaker 2: zoom in and be like okay now insert the red syringe.
17:38
Speaker 1: Yeah i see i see a new job opportunity opening
17:42
Speaker 1: for consulting.
17:43
Speaker 2: And then you can just click on the little video
17:45
Speaker 2: icon and not you won't see who it is and that's.
17:48
Speaker 1: All right you can just stay discreetness right her lawyers
17:52
Speaker 1: also said hospital staff had asked for pike shackles to
17:55
Speaker 1: be removed and the corrections department refused she remains restrained
17:59
Speaker 1: to the bed by her feet and right arm The
18:02
Speaker 1: team asked the court to address this as well. I
18:06
Speaker 1: don't know. I feel like they just keep asking for
18:08
Speaker 1: more and more. And finally, they're just going to be like,
18:10
Speaker 1: can she just go home?
18:12
Speaker 2: We're just going to... I don't know. I mean.
18:14
Speaker 1: We're just going to try double jeopardy or something. I mean,
18:17
Speaker 1: some argument.
18:19
Speaker 2: If they go and take someone to get sentenced to prison,
18:22
Speaker 2: and then they walk into the prison cell, and then
18:24
Speaker 2: the door can't lock.
18:26
Speaker 1: Or the prison burns down.
18:27
Speaker 2: Right. We're going to be like, oh, well, there's no
18:28
Speaker 2: precedent for this. What do we do? Preserve the evidence.
18:32
Speaker 2: Double jeopardy.
18:33
Speaker 1: I don't know.
18:34
Speaker 2: It's like, no, then find another jail cell and put
18:36
Speaker 2: them in there.
18:37
Speaker 1: So you're saying reschedule.
18:39
Speaker 2: Find and get another syringe.
18:40
Speaker 1: Get the Texas team in. All right. Witnesses to the
18:44
Speaker 1: execution attempt said that Pike breathed raggedly and complained that
18:48
Speaker 1: her arms were burning. Spivey, who is the attorney, said
18:52
Speaker 1: he counted seven needles in one arm. Because you know,
18:56
Speaker 1: even though they keep the curtains closed so that the
18:59
Speaker 1: people watching can't see.
19:01
Speaker 2: The people watching can't watch?
19:02
Speaker 1: The people watching can't watch certain parts of it. But
19:05
Speaker 1: she is allowed to have a clergy person, a religious
19:08
Speaker 1: type of person, or spiritual person with her. And she's
19:11
Speaker 1: allowed to have an attorney with her.
19:12
Speaker 2: Did she have a clergyman there?
19:14
Speaker 1: Yeah, I remember it was a Buddhist.
19:15
Speaker 2: Oh, that's right.
19:15
Speaker 1: Some Buddhist.
19:17
Speaker 2: Was he in red cloth?
19:19
Speaker 1: I don't know. Probably. Probably. But her attorney said he
19:22
Speaker 1: counted seven needles in one arm. Medical experts have suggested
19:26
Speaker 1: several possible causes for the failure. The drug may have
19:29
Speaker 1: gone into tissue instead of a vein. A vein may
19:33
Speaker 1: have blown. The drug may have been faulty or some
19:36
Speaker 1: combination of all of these.
19:37
Speaker 2: They really should have done a hanging or a fire squad.
19:40
Speaker 2: I mean, why are they playing games? It worked for
19:44
Speaker 2: many centuries without issue.
19:46
Speaker 1: Oh, you're talking about the hanging?
19:49
Speaker 2: Yeah.
19:49
Speaker 1: Yeah.
19:50
Speaker 2: And we're a firing squad. Like it was never an issue.
19:53
Speaker 2: I don't imagine. I haven't read on every hanging.
19:56
Speaker 1: Yeah.
19:56
Speaker 2: I don't think anyone got hung and then was said, oh,
19:59
Speaker 2: my neck hurts. And then they rushed him to the
20:01
Speaker 2: hospital and be like, oh, it didn't work. And then
20:02
Speaker 2: they have to relitigate everything.
20:04
Speaker 1: Right. Bring back hangings.
20:07
Speaker 2: Well, I mean, some type of foolproof system.
20:10
Speaker 1: Well, I guess lethal injection worked for a long time
20:13
Speaker 1: until Tennessee came along.
20:15
Speaker 2: And botched it. Maybe those people need some continuing education
20:18
Speaker 2: on the matter, and the Texas team can hold a seminar.
20:22
Speaker 1: And teach.
20:23
Speaker 2: Yeah.
20:23
Speaker 1: Right. This was not the only botched execution in Tennessee.
20:27
Speaker 1: This year, on May 21st of 2026, Tennessee called off
20:30
Speaker 1: its execution of Tony Caruthers, after the execution team spent
20:34
Speaker 1: over an hour unsuccessfully trying to set up the IV access.
20:39
Speaker 1: The Department of Corrections said a primary line was placed quickly,
20:42
Speaker 1: but staff couldn't establish the backup line its protocol requires,
20:46
Speaker 1: and an attempt at a center line also failed. Governor
20:50
Speaker 1: Bill Lee then granted a one-year reprieve. So, Tony, they
20:55
Speaker 1: couldn't get an IV in him either. I guess you
20:57
Speaker 1: have to have three lines, like one. I mean, are
20:59
Speaker 1: they putting three IVs in?
21:00
Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah. There's like... No, I think they might put
21:04
Speaker 2: one IV in, but there's multiple bags of IVs and
21:09
Speaker 2: they do round one. There's three stages of chemicals.
21:15
Speaker 1: This cocktail, as you call it. Yeah, but it calls
21:17
Speaker 1: it a backup line.
21:19
Speaker 2: Who knows? It sounds like they don't even know what
21:20
Speaker 2: they're doing. We're trying to figure out what they're doing.
21:21
Speaker 2: They don't even know what they're doing.
21:22
Speaker 1: Carruthers' lawyers say he was stuck more than a dozen
21:26
Speaker 1: times and visibly in pain. They quickly filed a federal
21:29
Speaker 1: lawsuit challenging the qualifications of the physician responsible for IV
21:33
Speaker 1: access who acknowledged in a deposition that he hadn't placed
21:37
Speaker 1: a central line since about 2013 and holds no current
21:41
Speaker 1: hospital privileges. That's the problem here is you can't get...
21:48
Speaker 1: Educated or current medical staff.
21:51
Speaker 2: There's no continuing education?
21:53
Speaker 1: I guess not. They just found some.
21:55
Speaker 2: Lethal injection?
21:57
Speaker 1: Random medical doctor that hadn't put in.
22:00
Speaker 2: Some failed medical student, probably.
22:02
Speaker 1: That hadn't given, that hadn't put an IV in anyone
22:06
Speaker 1: since 2013. They found him on Craigslist.
22:08
Speaker 2: There's one on Craigslist. And they're like, job, job. Was
22:12
Speaker 2: it like classifieds? Yes. No experience necessary.
22:18
Speaker 1: No. No medical experience necessary. The suit asks that any
22:24
Speaker 1: future IV-based attempt be performed only by someone currently licensed
22:28
Speaker 1: and credentialed to do so. So that's Tony Carruthers, who
22:34
Speaker 1: had a botched.
22:35
Speaker 2: Wait, he had credentials?
22:37
Speaker 1: No, he's asking. His attorneys are saying, because they gave
22:40
Speaker 1: him a year reprieve, which means they're like, you have
22:42
Speaker 1: a year to live, and then we will revisit this.
22:47
Speaker 1: So basically his attorneys are saying once a year has
22:49
Speaker 1: passed and we revisit this and he's to be put
22:53
Speaker 1: to death again, that they're asking that it be by
22:56
Speaker 1: a credentialed medical team.
22:58
Speaker 2: That would make sense.
23:01
Speaker 1: That would make sense. Yeah. Carruthers was condemned for the
23:04
Speaker 1: 1994 killings of three people. He has always maintained his
23:08
Speaker 1: innocence and his attorneys note that no forensic evidence links
23:11
Speaker 1: him to the crime. The case rested largely on a
23:14
Speaker 1: paid jailhouse informant and unidentified DNA and fingerprints from the
23:19
Speaker 1: scene have never been tested. See, that's another, I could
23:22
Speaker 1: get into a whole nother conversation about that. I don't
23:24
Speaker 1: think anyone on death row should be executed without forensic
23:28
Speaker 1: let's forensics linking them. I don't think you should ever
23:31
Speaker 1: be executed just based solely on eyewitness testimony and you shouldn't.
23:35
Speaker 2: Be, you're saying virtually zero doubt, right?
23:38
Speaker 1: And if there is DNA evidence in this case and
23:40
Speaker 1: he's been maintaining his innocence since 1994 and the only,
23:45
Speaker 1: the only evidence they have against him is a paid
23:47
Speaker 1: jailhouse informant. And you're telling me there's DNA in the scene,
23:50
Speaker 1: but nobody's bothered to test it. Test the DNA. Maybe
23:55
Speaker 1: the man is innocent.
23:57
Speaker 2: Oh, Very well, it could be.
23:59
Speaker 1: They also argue his serious mental illness led to him
24:01
Speaker 1: representing himself at trial and should bar his execution. The
24:05
Speaker 1: ACLU and his lawyers continue to press for DNA testing
24:08
Speaker 1: and a pause on executions. I don't know, DNA testing.
24:11
Speaker 1: I mean, if you have DNA from the scene and
24:13
Speaker 1: they didn't have the, you know, the scientific. I know,
24:16
Speaker 1: it makes no sense. I mean, it's 1994.
24:18
Speaker 2: We have a HD video of the crime taking place
24:23
Speaker 2: and it shows a clear view of their face.
24:26
Speaker 1: But let's not look at it. Oh, no.
24:27
Speaker 2: We're not going to admit that. We'll just... This guy
24:29
Speaker 2: said he did it. That's enough.
24:31
Speaker 1: Yeah.
24:31
Speaker 2: Like, what?
24:32
Speaker 1: I know. It's the same with Scott Peterson. They have
24:37
Speaker 1: DNA evidence from a mattress that was found in the van,
24:43
Speaker 1: and the judge denies the testing. Why would you deny
24:46
Speaker 1: the testing? And the Innocence Project in LA... would pay
24:50
Speaker 1: for the DNA testing. It isn't like a burden on
24:52
Speaker 1: taxpayers or anything like that. It's the Innocence Project saying,
24:56
Speaker 1: we will pay for the DNA testing, and then the
24:58
Speaker 1: judge denies it. I don't understand that. Why would you
25:02
Speaker 1: not want to test absolutely everything so that you can
25:05
Speaker 1: confirm with 100% certainty that Lacey Peterson wasn't in that van?
25:09
Speaker 1: Or if she was, then.
25:11
Speaker 2: Well, she might not have been in the van. Oh,
25:13
Speaker 2: it wasn't her mattress, right? It was just a mattress?
25:16
Speaker 1: Well, they found a van with a dirty mattress that
25:19
Speaker 1: had blood on it. That was in the same area
25:23
Speaker 1: of where she disappeared. And the whole point is... Was
25:27
Speaker 1: she in that van? Because a lot of people believe
25:29
Speaker 1: that she was kidnapped possibly by.
25:30
Speaker 2: The burglars across the street. Why don't we just test it? Like,
25:33
Speaker 2: why do we have to have the courts test it?
25:34
Speaker 2: Why can't the Innocence Project just like, can we have
25:37
Speaker 2: a sample of that? We're just going to go test
25:39
Speaker 2: it and we'll be right back.
25:41
Speaker 1: I don't know, I guess because they can't get the evidence. Otherwise,
25:43
Speaker 1: they probably would independently test it because they're saying they
25:46
Speaker 1: would independently pay for it. All right, back to Krista Pike.
25:49
Speaker 1: Krista Pike's current condition in an emergency filing with the
25:52
Speaker 1: Davidson County Chancery Court on October 2nd, Pike's attorneys claim
25:56
Speaker 1: the execution team seemingly failed to notice that the IV
25:59
Speaker 1: lines were misplaced or that her veins had ruptured, meaning
26:03
Speaker 1: some or all of the pentobarbital went into the surrounding
26:07
Speaker 1: tissue rather than into her bloodstream. Krista Pike remains unconscious
26:11
Speaker 1: and critically ill and doctors don't yet know whether she'll recover.
26:16
Speaker 1: She is intubated, intubated, and she is on a ventilator.
26:21
Speaker 1: Now here's, now this is, I bet you.
26:22
Speaker 2: Take her off the ventilator. See? There you go. You
26:26
Speaker 2: said that's okay.
26:27
Speaker 1: You solved it.
26:27
Speaker 2: Let's take her off the ventilator.
26:29
Speaker 1: Take her off the ventilator.
26:29
Speaker 2: See what happens. Lots of people have to do that
26:32
Speaker 2: to their loved ones. Yeah. So she's on a ventilator
26:36
Speaker 2: that's required for her to.
26:38
Speaker 1: I believe so.
26:38
Speaker 2: Yeah.
26:39
Speaker 1: So, Oh, All right, so Governor Bill Lee, who had
26:44
Speaker 1: denied Pike's clemency petition two days earlier, suspended all executions
26:49
Speaker 1: for the rest of the year and called for a
26:51
Speaker 1: comprehensive third-party review. Correction, Commissioner Frank Strada has resigned, saying
26:57
Speaker 1: it was in the best interest of Tennesseans while the
27:01
Speaker 1: independent review proceeds. Pike's attorneys filed an emergency motion asking
27:05
Speaker 1: the state to preserve all evidence from the failed attempt,
27:08
Speaker 1: and they're pushing for her death sentence to be commuted
27:10
Speaker 1: to life later. arguing that the governor's review doesn't go
27:13
Speaker 1: far enough. Death penalty opponents have also noted this is
27:17
Speaker 1: the state's second failed execution in five months. I mean,
27:21
Speaker 1: there's seriously a problem going on in Tennessee, and they
27:23
Speaker 1: need to figure out what to do with Krista Pike
27:25
Speaker 1: at this point. I mean, I'm sure everyone's sitting around going,
27:28
Speaker 1: what do we do? I don't know what to do now.
27:31
Speaker 1: And there's no legal precedent, I'm sure, that they can
27:34
Speaker 1: fall back on to say this is what we should
27:37
Speaker 1: do in this situation. So it will be interesting to
27:39
Speaker 1: see what happens in Tennessee and what happens with Krista Pike.
27:43
Speaker 1: We know what Shane thinks. Shane thinks that they should
27:46
Speaker 1: just pull the ventilator.
27:47
Speaker 2: Yeah. I mean, this is an example of a case
27:51
Speaker 2: where we know she did it. There's no disputing it.
27:55
Speaker 2: And it was gruesome and violent. And it was merely
27:58
Speaker 2: for almost for fun, right?
28:00
Speaker 1: It was just for kicks. Yeah. Well, it was because
28:02
Speaker 1: she was jealous of her. Yeah. Because her boyfriend. She
28:05
Speaker 1: just wanted her dead.
28:05
Speaker 2: Yeah. It wasn't like it escalated into something and it
28:09
Speaker 2: got out of control.
28:10
Speaker 1: No, it wasn't a heat of the moment. It was
28:12
Speaker 1: a premeditated. Remember, they signed out. They were all at
28:14
Speaker 1: Job Corps together. They signed out. They lured her.
28:16
Speaker 2: They just carried the skull around. Yeah. Or the parts
28:18
Speaker 2: of the skull.
28:18
Speaker 1: The part of the skull. Yeah.
28:19
Speaker 2: So what are we waiting for?
28:22
Speaker 1: All right, let's just talk about one more thing, because
28:23
Speaker 1: this just came up in the news, and it has
28:25
Speaker 1: to do with executions. I don't know if you saw this,
28:27
Speaker 1: but Nadal Hassan, he was the 2009 Fort Hood shooter,
28:32
Speaker 1: and he will be the first execution by firing squad
28:36
Speaker 1: since World War II.
28:37
Speaker 2: I think it was the first execution by firing squad
28:40
Speaker 2: of a military.
28:41
Speaker 1: Of military, yes.
28:42
Speaker 2: Because in the 1970s, there was a firing squad in Utah.
28:47
Speaker 2: His name was Gary Gilmore. He was... executed by firing squad.
28:51
Speaker 2: He was the first person to be executed by a
28:55
Speaker 2: state after the capital punishment was reinstated, after the death
29:01
Speaker 2: penalty was reinstated.
29:03
Speaker 1: And what was his crime? Do you know?
29:04
Speaker 2: Yeah, he killed people at a gas station in Orem, Utah.
29:07
Speaker 1: Oh. Yeah.
29:08
Speaker 2: But he led a life of crime. It was actually
29:10
Speaker 2: kind of sad. He led a life of crime. Just,
29:11
Speaker 2: you know, one of those things were unfortunate childhood, upbringing,
29:16
Speaker 2: just everything was just fast pace, right? Yeah. I remember
29:20
Speaker 2: I heard a criminal once say that their childhood and
29:23
Speaker 2: their life felt like they were drenched in gasoline and
29:26
Speaker 2: they lived in hell. And so they're just always on
29:29
Speaker 2: the run, right? So that's what this guy was. He
29:31
Speaker 2: just always had troubles.
29:34
Speaker 1: Do you feel sorry for him?
29:35
Speaker 2: Well, I feel sorry that he had those circumstances. But,
29:37
Speaker 2: you know, I mean, he killed people. That sucks. Anyway,
29:41
Speaker 2: he requested to be put to death. He did not
29:44
Speaker 2: want to appeal. His attorneys kept trying to get him
29:47
Speaker 2: to appeal and exhaust all his options. And he said no,
29:51
Speaker 2: because he felt the only way he can actually be
29:54
Speaker 2: a good citizen or a good person is was to
29:57
Speaker 2: accept punishment because he deserved death. He knew that what
30:00
Speaker 2: he did was wrong, and he knew that he will
30:02
Speaker 2: always be a criminal. And so he wanted to be
30:05
Speaker 2: put to death. And it's kind of funny because he's
30:07
Speaker 2: refusing attorneys. They're like appearing, he's writing letters to the
30:10
Speaker 2: judges like, that is not my attorney. I don't want
30:12
Speaker 2: to appeal. It was like, please let me do this,
30:16
Speaker 2: like to contribute to society this way.
30:18
Speaker 1: And they executed him by firing squad.
30:19
Speaker 2: Firing squad, yeah.
30:21
Speaker 1: All right, President Trump has approved Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's
30:25
Speaker 1: recommendation that Nidal Hassan, the former Army major and psychiatrist,
30:30
Speaker 1: he was convicted of the 2009 Fort Hood mass shooting.
30:34
Speaker 1: Pete Hegseth has recommended that he be executed by firing squad.
30:39
Speaker 1: CNN reported on this. I read the article this morning.
30:41
Speaker 1: Hassan killed 13 people and wounded 32 in the November
30:44
Speaker 1: 5 2009 attack. If carried out, it would be the
30:49
Speaker 1: Army's first firing squad execution of a soldier since World
30:52
Speaker 1: War II and the first execution of any service member
30:56
Speaker 1: in 65 years. You know, it talked about, I read also,
31:00
Speaker 1: I don't remember the guy's name, but they executed someone
31:03
Speaker 1: else by firing squad, I believe in the 40s maybe,
31:06
Speaker 1: because he was a deserter.
31:07
Speaker 2: He had left.
31:08
Speaker 1: He had ran. But I don't think any.
31:10
Speaker 2: Oh, like AWOL?
31:11
Speaker 1: Yes. But I don't believe anyone should ever be executed
31:13
Speaker 1: for that.
31:13
Speaker 2: No, that seems... That seems harsh. That seems like 1940s logic.
31:17
Speaker 1: Yeah, I believe they made a movie about it as well.
31:22
Speaker 1: But I was reading that, and I was like, that
31:24
Speaker 1: is sad. I don't believe anyone should ever be executed
31:26
Speaker 1: for something like that. I know.
31:28
Speaker 2: It's like, oh, you're scared to go to battle? Oh,
31:30
Speaker 2: we're going to kill you then.
31:31
Speaker 1: Yeah.
31:32
Speaker 2: Oh, by the way, back to Gary.
31:33
Speaker 1: Gary Gilmore.
31:34
Speaker 2: His last words when he was asked, do you have
31:37
Speaker 2: any final words?
31:38
Speaker 1: Yes.
31:39
Speaker 2: They were, let's do this.
31:43
Speaker 1: Let's do this.
31:45
Speaker 2: Because he really wanted to move forward with that. So
31:47
Speaker 2: every time someone says, let's do this, I always think
31:49
Speaker 2: of like a firing squad.
31:51
Speaker 1: Yeah.
31:52
Speaker 2: Guy on death row.
31:53
Speaker 1: So a panel of 13 officers convicted Hassan in 2013
31:57
Speaker 1: on 13 counts of premeditated murder and 32 counts of
32:00
Speaker 1: attempted murder and unanimously recommended death. At trial, Hassan admitted
32:06
Speaker 1: to the shooting and said he targeted soldiers that were
32:08
Speaker 1: about to deploy to Afghanistan in order to protect the Taliban.
32:13
Speaker 1: Police shot Hassan during the attack, and he has been
32:16
Speaker 1: paralyzed from the waist down ever since. The last soldier
32:19
Speaker 1: the army executed by firing squad was Private Eddie Slavik.
32:22
Speaker 1: He was shot in France in January of 45 for desertion.
32:27
Speaker 1: He was the only one executed among roughly 50,000 American
32:31
Speaker 1: deserters in the war. I don't know. That was just
32:36
Speaker 1: sad to me. I mean, someone wrote about him and
32:39
Speaker 1: said he wasn't a bad soldier. He just simply, he
32:40
Speaker 1: was afraid.
32:41
Speaker 2: Like that doesn't, no one won in that scenario.
32:44
Speaker 1: Right.
32:44
Speaker 2: Everyone lost.
32:45
Speaker 1: Three other soldiers are also on military death row at
32:48
Speaker 1: Fort Leavenworth. All were convicted of murder. All right. So, well,
32:53
Speaker 1: we will see. They don't have a date, I believe,
32:56
Speaker 1: a date and time for the firing squad for Hassan.
32:59
Speaker 1: It'll be interesting to see if they, I wonder if
33:01
Speaker 1: they'll publicly say whether they have One of the firing
33:05
Speaker 1: squad with a fake bullet or two or none.
33:10
Speaker 2: I can tell you because I just looked up Gary.
33:13
Speaker 2: And it was in Draper, Utah. Remember that prison that
33:17
Speaker 2: was there that we live nearby? Yeah.
33:18
Speaker 1: We used to live near Draper, Utah, by the way.
33:20
Speaker 2: Which they since demolished and made it like housing. Yeah.
33:23
Speaker 2: But anyway, it was five men. And it was announced
33:31
Speaker 2: that four would have live rounds and one wouldn't. Then
33:35
Speaker 2: when they inspected him, he had five holes in him.
33:38
Speaker 1: Oh, that's interesting. So did they lie to the firing squad?
33:43
Speaker 2: I don't know.
33:44
Speaker 1: Or did they just lie to the public?
33:45
Speaker 2: I don't know.
33:46
Speaker 1: Or did someone just put a live round in last minute?
33:48
Speaker 2: He had five holes in the shirt, according to a documentary.
33:54
Speaker 1: Okay.
33:55
Speaker 2: And the brother says the state of Utah took no
33:58
Speaker 2: chances to put my brother to death. Well, he wanted
34:00
Speaker 2: to die.
34:01
Speaker 1: Would you rather die by lethal injection? I couldn't even
34:05
Speaker 1: get the question out. You just said firing squad? Firing squad?
34:08
Speaker 2: Yeah. But if I'm going to commit a capital crime,
34:11
Speaker 2: I'm going to go to Tennessee, apparently. Yeah.
34:13
Speaker 1: And you're going to ask for a lethal injection? Dry
34:15
Speaker 1: it out for 30 years.
34:16
Speaker 2: Go to the hospital for a year. Just, you know.
34:20
Speaker 1: Take your time. Yeah. All right. Any final thoughts on
34:23
Speaker 1: Krista Pike? No.
34:25
Speaker 2: I wish her a speedy recovery so they can put
34:28
Speaker 2: her to death.
34:29
Speaker 1: By guillotine. Yes. Or firing squad.
34:31
Speaker 2: Send her to France. Okay.
34:33
Speaker 1: All right. Thanks, guys, for listening to Legally Brunette. We
34:35
Speaker 1: appreciate it. If you have any recommendations of cases that
34:38
Speaker 1: you would like us to cover, please find me on
34:40
Speaker 1: Instagram and leave me a message. We love to hear
34:43
Speaker 1: your feedback. Leave us a review. Make sure to follow
34:46
Speaker 1: Legally Brunette and tell your friends and family about Legally Brunette.
34:50
Speaker 1: Thanks so much for listening. We appreciate it.