Christa Pike, the only female death row inmate in Tennessee, was convicted in 1995 for killing her classmate, Colleen Slemmer, because she believed Slemmer wanted to “steal” her boyfriend. She was sentenced to death for the crime when she was 18, making her the last person in the state to receive such a sentence for a crime committed at that age. Pike was recently featured on Investigation Discovery’s “Mean Girl Murders.” The documentary highlighted the gruesome details of the murder, including Pike’s attempt to execute an elaborate prison break. Pike, who is now 48, was the subject of the show’s “She-Devil” episode that aired recently.
According to reports, Pike, along with her then-boyfriend Tadaryl Shipp and friend Shadolla Peterson, lured Slemmer to an abandoned steam mill under the pretense of making amends. Pike had pocketed a box cutter and a meat cleaver before the meeting. At the mill, Pike accused Slemmer of trying to sleep with her boyfriend, leading to a brutal beating and slashing that ended with Pike smashing Slemmer’s skull with a piece of asphalt. Slemmer had been stabbed hundreds of times before she died, and a pentagram was carved into her chest. Pike even showed a piece of Slemmer’s skull to friends afterward.
After the murder, Pike, Shipp, and Peterson were arrested within 36 hours. Shipp received a life sentence with the possibility of parole in 2026, as he was only 17 when the crime occurred. Peterson was given six years of probation after pleading guilty to being an accessory. Pike’s tumultuous upbringing, marked by violence, sexual abuse, drug abuse, and neglect, was a focal point of her trial. She claimed to have been sexually abused and molested multiple times, leading to her attempts at suicide starting at the age of 12. Pike’s lawyers have appealed her sentence multiple times, arguing that her mental illness and ineffective counsel should commute her sentence to life in prison. However, these appeals have been denied.
Since her conviction, Pike has been living on death row at Debra K. Johnson Rehabilitation Center in Nashville. She has been involved in violent incidents within the prison, including an attempted murder of another inmate in 2001 and another attempted escape in 2012. In collaboration with a corrections officer and a pen pal, Pike had planned an escape but was thwarted when prison personnel discovered the plot. Pike’s scheduled execution in August 2020 was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As of now, Tennessee has not announced a new execution date for her. If she were to be executed, Pike would be the first woman in the state to be put to death in approximately 200 years, as per information from the documentary.
Despite her troubled past and violent behavior while incarcerated, Christa Pike’s case continues to draw attention due to the brutal nature of the crime she committed. The details of the murder of Colleen Slemmer, including the pentagram carved into her chest and the smashing of her skull, have shocked many. Pike’s appeals and attempts at commutation have been unsuccessful so far, and she remains on death row. The upcoming developments in Pike’s case regarding her potential execution will be closely watched, as her criminal history and actions behind bars have already garnered significant interest from the public and the media.
