A woman on death row in Tennessee, Christa Gail Pike, is poised to become the first female executed in the state in over two centuries. Pike, the sole female inmate on Tennessee’s death row, received the death penalty at 18 for the heinous murder of Colleen Slemmer in 1995. Pike and her then-boyfriend lured Slemmer into the woods near the University of Tennessee, where Pike inflicted brutal violence on her victim, including slashing her throat, striking her with a cleaver, and ultimately killing her.
Convicted of first-degree murder in 1996, Pike was sentenced to death, while her boyfriend received a life sentence. Additionally, Pike faced another 25 years in prison for a separate conviction in 2004 related to an attempted strangulation of a fellow inmate. After nearly three decades since her sentencing, the Tennessee Supreme Court has set an execution date for Pike in 2026.
If the execution proceeds, Pike would mark the first woman put to death in Tennessee since 1820 and only the fourth in the state’s history. Pike’s legal team has cited her troubled upbringing, history of abuse, and mental health issues as reasons to spare her from execution. In a statement, her attorneys highlighted Pike’s remorse and personal growth over the years. Pike herself expressed deep regret for her actions in a letter, acknowledging the profound impact of her crime on multiple lives.
The last woman executed in the US was Amber McLaughlin in Missouri in January 2023. Death Penalty Information Center records indicate that since 1976, 18 women have been executed in the United States under the modern application of the death penalty.