The head of Tennessee’s prison system is stepping down following Wednesday’s failed execution of Christa Pike, Gov. Bill Lee said Saturday. It was the second failed execution under Commissioner Frank Strada, following the attempt to execute Tony Carruthers in May.
In his statement, obtained by The Tennessean, Lee said he appreciated Strada’s “willingness to put the interests of Tennesseans first during this difficult moment” and that he was “grateful for his commitment to ensuring a smooth leadership transition.”
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Strada, in his statement, said serving in his role was a “great honor” and that he still believed that the state carried out the execution attempt “in accordance with the established protocol.”
“Stepping aside is in the best interest of Tennesseans as the independent review moves forward,” Strada said.
Lee has halted executions so an independent group can investigate the state’s execution protocols, the second time Lee has done this as governor.
Who is Frank Strada?
Lee appointed Strada as commissioner in January 2023, bringing him in specifically to restore integrity to the state’s execution system, according to The Tennessean. In 2022, before Strada took the job, Lee halted executions just before the execution of Oscar Smith because of oversights in execution protocols. Lee announced an independent investigation into the state’s execution system.
The report found systemic flaws and said the state needed to hire a dedicated pharmaceutical expert. But Strada later testified the independent investigation had only suggested, not mandated, these things, WJHL reported. Strada was asked under oath if the Tennessee Department of Correction had hired a full-time pharmaceutical expert and said it had not.
“It was only a recommendation. It wasn’t a requirement,” Strada said.
What happened during Christa Pike’s attempted execution?
Attorneys for Pike have said the state hasn’t told them many details about what happened during her attempted execution. But they know she is currently unconscious and on a ventilator at a hospital.
On Friday, her attorneys filed an emergency motion seeking an order requiring TDOC to preserve all evidence related to the failed execution.
Pike survived two presumptively fatal doses of pentobarbital, administered more than an hour apart. Randy Spivey, one of Pike’s lawyers, called the botched execution “cruel and torturous.”
After the second lethal injection failed, prison officials called an ambulance that transported Pike to a hospital where she began receiving care.
Witnesses said the execution was clearly abnormal and that Pike appeared to be awake during it. Catherine Sweeney, a reporter from Nashville public radio station WPLN who was among the media witnesses, said at a press conference following the attempted execution that even after two doses of the lethal drug, Pike was still breathing.
“It was very ragged,” Sweeney said. “She lifted her head up and was looking around at one point. She said that there was a spot that was burning and hurting and asked if that was normal. None of it was normal. I covered all the executions last year and most of the ones this year. We haven’t seen anything like it.”
Pike’s failed execution comes after the state’s attempt to execute Carruthers by lethal injection in May was halted after more than an hour of unsuccessful attempts to establish IV lines.
What’s next?
Lee didn’t say who would be replacing Strada, who is expected to leave his role by the end of the month.
For Pike, it’s not clear if she will recover fully or at all from the state’s execution attempt. Her lawyers are pushing for her death sentence to be commuted to a life sentence. Pike was convicted of torturing and murdering a classmate, Colleen Slemmer, in 1995.
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