Tennessee Prisons Chief Resigns After Failed Execution of Christa Pike
Frank Strada, commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Correction, will resign this month following the failed execution of Christa Pike, Governor Bill Lee announced on Saturday. Pike, one of the youngest women ever sentenced to death in the United States, survived two doses of a lethal drug and is now unconscious and on a ventilator at a hospital. The botched procedure marks the second time since May that Tennessee has been unable to carry out an execution despite the prisoner being seemingly moments from death. Strada's departure represents the first major staff shake-up since the incident, with some of Lee's fellow Republicans and other elected officials having urged a change in leadership. The governor's announcement did not specify a reason for Strada's resignation, which comes amid heightened scrutiny of the state's execution protocols.
Key facts
- Frank Strada, commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Correction, is resigning this month.
- Governor Bill Lee announced the resignation on Saturday.
- Christa Pike survived two doses of a lethal drug during a failed execution.
- Pike is unconscious and on a ventilator at a hospital.
- Pike was one of the youngest US women ever sent to death row.
- It was the second time since May that Tennessee could not execute a prisoner seemingly moments from death.
- Some of Governor Lee's fellow Republicans and other elected officials had urged a change in leadership.
- The resignation is the first major staff shake-up since Pike's failed execution.
Entities
Artists
- Christa Pike
- Bill Lee
- Frank Strada
Institutions
- Tennessee Department of Correction
- Republican Party
Locations
- Tennessee
- United States