Tennessee Prisons Chief Resigns After Botched Lethal Injection of Christa Pike

Tennessee's top prison official, Commissioner Frank Strada, is resigning following the failed execution of death row inmate Christa Pike. Governor Bill Lee announced Strada's departure, which is effective later in October, and stated that the state will launch an independent investigation into the incident.

Pike reportedly survived two lethal injection attempts on Wednesday and remains in critical condition, hospitalized and on a ventilator. Her attorneys have indicated that hospital staff are working to clear the pentobarbital from her system and are uncertain about her prognosis. The failed execution has prompted Governor Lee to suspend all executions in Tennessee until at least the end of the year.