Christa Pike files emergency motion to remain in Nashville infirmary

Christa Pike filed an emergency motion in federal court on Monday.

The 50-year-old inmate seeks a court order to prevent prison officials from moving her back to her previous housing unit at the Debra K. Johnson Rehabilitation Center in Nashville.

Pike is currently recovering in solitary confinement at the facility's infirmary. She is treating medical complications that arose from the September 30 execution attempt, during which she survived two doses of pentobarbital.

In the court documents, Pike described specific risks associated with her former pod. The motion states that the unit contains inmates with histories of assaults and disciplinary issues. Pike wrote that during her two years in that housing block, she witnessed attacks involving both inmates and guards, as well as acute psychological breakdowns among residents.

The filing argues that Pike's severe physical weakness leaves her vulnerable. She stated that in her current condition, she would be unable to defend herself or escape if another inmate attacked her. Pike expressed fear of serious injury if officials move her back to the pod while she is still recovering from the procedure.

The motion also cites health concerns regarding the conditions in the former unit. Pike claimed that returning there poses a high risk of infection and further injury due to unsanitary environments. She specifically noted that she would be forced to clean and use a shower described in the filing as roach-infested while still in a state of recovery.

Pike was sentenced to death for the 1995 murder of Colleen Slemmer, a 19-year-old fellow participant in a Job Corps training program in Knoxville. In 2001, Pike received an additional conviction for the attempted murder of another inmate. The September 30 procedure was notable because Pike was poised to become the first woman executed in Tennessee in more than two centuries. Following the failed attempt, Tennessee Governor Bill Lee issued a temporary halt on all executions in the state to allow for an investigation. The court will now consider whether to grant the injunction to keep Pike in the infirmary.