Christa Pike Awake and Talking After Botched Execution

Deven (0:08)

Welcome to The TMZ Podcast. Deven here with Courtney.

Courtney (0:11)

Hello.

Deven (0:12)

Morning. Morning, everyone.

SPEAKER_3 (0:13)

Yes.

Deven (0:15)

Did you cut your hair? Is that why you're wearing a hat?

SPEAKER_3 (0:18)

No, do you remember I was blonde?

Deven (0:19)

No, I tried to block it. God, I haven't seen you wear a hat. That's why I was.

SPEAKER_3 (0:24)

It is weird, and it's not fully down, so we can still see the tips.

Deven (0:28)

Oh, I thought it looked like you shaved it. Okay, okay. Just checking in on you.

Yeah, I got you, man. So Christa Pike, a huge update we got yesterday is that she's awake and talking after surviving the failed execution last week. So we will get into all that, and then there is a lot going on still in this Cornell case. Some of the Fraternity Brothers' video got released of them talking to cops, so we will play that.

This was them talking to cops back in the day when the investigation was going down. Also, one of the Fraternity Brothers who's being sued and re-investigated, I guess, made some claims against the Jane Doe back in the day that were revealed. And then if we have time, Megyn Kelly is being...

SPEAKER_3 (1:24)

Megyn Kelly.

Deven (1:25)

Yeah, is being Megyn Kelly, and she is going after Olivia Rodrigo for her stance on the Cornell...

SPEAKER_3 (1:31)

Yeah, and she's also going after Jane Doe herself.

Deven (1:34)

Yeah, I didn't see that part, but you'll have to film me.

SPEAKER_3 (1:37)

Oh, I will. I am ready with it.

Deven (1:38)

Megyn Kelly. I mean, you kind of know what to expect from Megyn Kelly. Yeah.

So Christa Pike, so like I said, awake and talking, survived the execution. And you were saying her attorneys are meeting with her this afternoon.

SPEAKER_3 (1:52)

Yeah, they're finally going to get to speak to her. Because remember earlier this week, the attorney said he hasn't been able to be in the room yet or speak to her. Obviously, she was unconscious, but he wasn't able to go.

Deven (2:00)

So she's obviously still in critical condition, hospitalized in Nashville. And I know her attorney have basically been calling for the death sentence to be commuted. Which, yeah, the jail botched it, but it was like she was sentenced to death.

SPEAKER_3 (2:18)

She was, but they had to take a little bit of responsibility. If you're going to execute someone, you got to have your cards in order.

Deven (2:24)

That, and I think, obviously, you look at this situation as a very cruel and traumatic ordeal. But I don't know. I mean, I'm trying to be sensitive on this particular topic, but it's like she did a heinous crime. She was sentenced to death.

Yes, the jail completely messed this up. So I think someone, whoever was in charge of this process, needs to be reprimanded or fired. Yeah. But it was like she was still sentenced to death.

SPEAKER_3 (2:51)

She was, but this has made it so much more messy because now her prognosis is unclear. She's been in the hospital for days. Someone's going to have to pay for this.

Deven (2:59)

But that's the other thing is now even if she is eventually, if they redo the process, it's like now the people are paying for her hospital stay, they're going to pay to keep her alive. They're probably paying for all her hospital bills.

SPEAKER_3 (3:15)

Of course they are.

Deven (3:16)

And it's like, I don't know, it just seems like an incredible waste of taxpayer dollars.

SPEAKER_3 (3:22)

No, it does, but the governor and the jail have to figure out how to handle this because it is not looking good for either of them. It just looks sloppy all around.

Deven (3:30)

It's just like, I don't get how you mess something like this up. I still can't wrap my mind. How you mess something like this up?

SPEAKER_3 (3:36)

She has severe arm damage. Her lawyer was saying that they attempted seven times to put the IV into her left arm and that when they were trying on the right arm, the arm turned purple. So it's like, what was going on in that execution room that it was so misguided?

Deven (3:52)

Yeah, so I didn't see this, but the governor, Bill Lee, as you would expect, has paused all executions through the end of this year. This is actually the second one that they messed up.

SPEAKER_3 (4:04)

Wait, what?

Deven (4:05)

Yeah, so apparently this was months after another botched execution of some guy named Tony Carruthers.

SPEAKER_3 (4:11)

Was it also lethal injection, I wonder?