Pike remains unconscious and on a ventilator<\/a> several days after Tennessee attempted to execute her by lethal injection. <\/p>\nHer attorney, Stephen Ferrell, provided the troubling update Sunday while appearing on CNN\u2019s State of the Union.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe don\u2019t really know the prognosis yet and may not know for several days,\u201d Ferrell said.<\/p>\n
Asked whether Pike has regained consciousness since the September 30 execution attempt, Ferrell responded, \u201cNot that I am aware.\u201d<\/p>\n
And the uncertainty doesn\u2019t end there.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think one of the main things that will leave this up in the air for a while is the fact that we don\u2019t know what the prognosis is,\u201d Ferrell explained. \u201cIf she recovers \u2014 she may not fully recover. And there may be issues about her competence. We just don\u2019t know any of this.\u201d<\/p>\n
That\u2019s a particularly significant issue given that Pike could potentially face another execution attempt if her death sentence remains intact.<\/p>\n
Pike\u2019s legal team is instead asking Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee to commute her sentence to life in prison.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe has already endured a torturous attempt at executing her,\u201d Ferrell said.<\/p>\n
\nThe execution attempt reportedly involved two doses of pentobarbital after officials struggled to establish an IV. <\/p>\n
Pike\u2019s attorneys have said seven needles were used and that both of her arms were swollen, burned and blistered when she arrived at the hospital. They also said Pike could be heard crying and expressing pain during the procedure.<\/p>\n
Tennessee has since halted executions for the remainder of the year while an independent investigation into what happened is conducted. The state\u2019s corrections commissioner, Frank Strada, has also resigned.<\/p>\n
Pike was sentenced to death for the 1995 murder of 19-year-old Colleen Slemmer. She has spent decades on death row and was scheduled to become the first woman executed by Tennessee in more than 200 years.<\/p>\n
Now, however, the biggest question may not be when Tennessee will attempt to execute Pike again.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s whether she will ever be healthy enough for that question to matter.<\/p>\n
We will have further updates on this developing story as new information becomes available.<\/p>\n
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