How Texas' lethal injection protocol compares after failed Tennessee execution
Christa Pike death sentence: Comparing Tennessee, Texas lethal injections
Tennessee's scheduled executions are now on pause after a death row inmate survived two rounds of lethal injections. FOX 26's Karys Belger looked into the possible reasons behind the failed attempts and the similar injection processes for Tennessee and Texas.
HOUSTON - A failed execution in Tennessee is raising questions about lethal injection procedures in Texas, where another execution is scheduled for next week.
What we know:
Christa Pike survived after Tennessee officials administered two doses of pentobarbital during an attempted execution Wednesday. Tennessee officials say staff followed the state’s established protocol, but the procedure did not result in Pike’s death.
Texas also uses pentobarbital and is scheduled to carry out another execution on Oct. 7.
Texas and Tennessee both use a single-drug lethal injection protocol, involving pentobarbital.
Professor Corinna Barrett Lain, the George E. Allen Chair in Law at the University of Richmond School of Law and author of Secrets of the Killing State: The Untold Story of Lethal Injection, told FOX 26 the two states use the same drug, the same amount and the same basic protocol.
Both call for an initial 5-gram dose of pentobarbital, followed by another dose if the person remains alive.
In a statement to FOX 26, the Texas Department of Criminal Justice said its lethal injection procedure uses a single-drug pentobarbital protocol administered by a medically trained drug team through two IV lines.
TDCJ said Texas has carried out 602 executions and "stands ready" to carry out the execution scheduled for Oct. 7.
Experts who spoke with FOX 26 said several factors can affect how a lethal injection proceeds.
Professor Deborah Denno of Fordham University School of Law said possible failure points can include the condition of the drugs, the training and experience of the execution team, the prisoner’s medical condition and IV placement.
IV placement is particularly important, Denno said.
"If you don’t place the IV correctly, then the inmate’s not going to get a sufficient injection of drugs," she said.
What we don't know:
Investigators have not yet determined why Pike survived the attempted execution.
Experts say possible questions include whether there was a problem with the pentobarbital, how the drug was administered, IV access, execution-team procedures or Pike’s medical condition.
It is also unclear whether Texas officials are conducting any additional internal review in response to the Tennessee case.
TDCJ did not indicate in its response to FOX 26 that any changes are planned before the Oct. 7 execution.
What they're saying:
Lain said what happened in Tennessee should prompt officials in other states using similar procedures to examine what can go wrong before another execution takes place.
"I’d be asking myself, what are the things that can go wrong, and what are the things I can do something about?" Lain said.
Denno said secrecy surrounding lethal injection procedures can make it difficult for the public or outside experts to independently assess what happened when an execution fails.
"Secrecy is the huge problem here," Denno said. "We just don’t know what people are doing. We can’t verify anything."
Texas, meanwhile, says it remains prepared to move forward.
TDCJ said the agency follows a "structured, legally regulated death penalty procedure" and "stands ready to carry out the execution scheduled for Oct. 7."
What's next:
Tennessee has paused executions while officials investigate why Pike survived the attempted execution and whether changes to the state’s procedures are needed.
In Texas, the next execution remains scheduled for Oct. 7.
TDCJ has not announced any change to that schedule or indicated that the Tennessee case will alter Texas’ current lethal injection procedures.
Experts who spoke with FOX 26 said the Tennessee investigation could provide more information about whether the failure involved the drug, its administration, IV access or another factor — and whether those findings could have implications for other states using similar protocols.
The Source: Texas Department of Criminal Justice, Tennessee Department of Correction, Professor Corrina Lain, University of Richmond School of Law, Professor Deborah Denno, Fordham University School of Law.