NASHVILLE, Tenn. — (WOKI / WVLT) – Attorneys for Tennessee death row inmate Christa Pike are mounting a new legal challenge, questioning whether the state can carry out her execution in a constitutional manner.
In a motion filed with the Tennessee Supreme Court, Pike’s legal team is asking for the appointment of a Special Master to review how the state’s lethal injection protocol would be applied in her case. They argue Pike has unique physical, medical and mental health conditions that could result in extreme pain under the current execution method.
The filing comes in the wake of a recently halted execution involving inmate Tony Carruthers, which has raised broader concerns about the state’s ability to properly administer lethal injections…