Christa Pike survived lethal injection — what happens next?

Christa Pike’s survival of a lethal injection has created unprecedented medical and legal questions over whether Tennessee can attempt to execute her again or whether her death sentence could be commuted to life imprisonment.

Pike, 50, remains hospitalized after Tennessee officials administered two doses of pentobarbital during the September 30 execution attempt. She has since regained consciousness and is speaking, although her attorneys say her recovery could be lengthy.

According to The Washington Post, her lawyers described her survival as “medically unprecedented” and intend to continue pressing for her sentence to be commuted to life without parole.

The next immediate step is a court battle over evidence from the failed execution. Pike’s lawyers are seeking preservation of records, including information about the drugs and procedures used. A court hearing was scheduled for Wednesday.

Tennessee Governor Bill Lee has meanwhile halted further executions and ordered a comprehensive third-party investigation into what went wrong.

Whether Tennessee can legally attempt to execute Pike again remains unsettled. Legal experts have raised possible constitutional challenges involving cruel and unusual punishment and double jeopardy, although there is disagreement over whether those arguments would ultimately prevent another execution.

For now, Pike remains under sentence of death while receiving medical treatment. Her attorneys said, “Christa is a survivor and will take recovery one day at a time.”