In brief
Tennessee’s Department of Corrections Commissioner Frank Strada announced his resignation after the failed execution of death‑row inmate Christa Pike. Governor Bill Lee said the change was in the state’s best interests amid the investigation. Pike, sentenced to death in 1996 for the murder of Colleen Slemmer, survived two lethal injections and remains in critical condition. Strada’s departure follows calls for scrutiny of the state’s capital‑punishment protocol.
Tennessee’s head of corrections will resign after the failed execution of death‑row inmate Christa Pike.
Governor Bill Lee announced the change on Saturday, saying it was in the state’s best interests amid ongoing investigations into the botched lethal injection.
Frank Strada, the Department of Corrections commissioner, called the investigation “entirely appropriate and necessary” and said he was stepping down as a matter of public confidence.
Pike, sentenced to death in 1996 for the murder of Colleen Slemmer, survived two lethal injections and is now in critical condition at a Tennessee hospital as her lawyers seek to commute her sentence.
By Sakshi Venkatraman
