Christa Gail Pike wasn't Tennessee's first failed execution this year. Here's what to know

A failed execution in Tennessee is raising more questions about the state's capital punishment protocols after Christa Gail Pike survived two doses of a lethal injection Wednesday evening.

Pike, who was alive and snoring after officials administered both doses of pentobarbital, was taken to a hospital. Her lawyers said Thursday at a news conference that she is in critical condition and receiving life-saving care, but they do not know her prognosis.

"The state of Tennessee has shown us again that they are not capable of carrying out an execution consistent with basic human dignity," said Pike's lawyer Randy Pivey. "Last night was not just inefficient, it was cruel and it was torturous. It was also predictable."

Republican Gov. Bill Lee, who said the incident was "deeply disturbing," halted executions for the remainder of the year and ordered a third-party review.

"Carrying out a lawfully imposed sentence is among the state's most important responsibilities," Lee told reporters Thursday. He said Tennesseans expect death penalty sentences to be "carried out in a manner that is not only legal and constitutional, but effective, and that didn't happen."

He described Pike's botched execution as a "tragedy," and said he was "highly disappointed."

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