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Christa Pike’s victim’s mother now says she wants to go and ‘kill’ Christa herself after the execution failed
The mother of the student murdered by Christa Pike more than 30 years ago has weighed in on the convicted killer's execution - and she's ready to take matters into her own hands.
May and Raul Martinez Jr, the mother and step-father of murdered schoolgirl Colleen Slemmer, were present when the woman convicted of killing their daughter was set to be executed for the crime.
However, as is now common knowledge, Pike's execution on September 30 was botched and she survived two lethal injections and is now in a critical condition in hospital.
It was a bitter pill for May to swallow after waiting 30 years for justice for her daughter - and she's finally speaking out about the experience.
Colleen Slemmer's mother wants to "kill" Christa Pike herself after botched execution
May described to People the atmosphere in the Tennessee prison where she had gathered to finally watch her daughter's killer die via lethal injection.
Raul Martinez Jr recounted how, 15 minutes after the first lethal injection was administered to Pike, the execution chamber curtains suddenly closed.
"We waited about three minutes and they said, ‘We’re going to give her another dose,’” he remebered. “They opened another bag and she was still picking up her head and moving around.”
After the second dose then failed to kill Pike, the couple and all the other witnesses present were instructed to leave the viewing room.
It was especially tough on May, who told People that she had to fight the urge to administer her own justice on Pike.
"If I could have gotten in that room, I would have taken the box cutter and cut her up like she did Colleen," she said.
When questioned about what was on her mind in the days following the failed execution, May cut straight to the point.
"I want to go kill Christa," she replied. "How's that?"
Who was Christa Pike's murder victim Colleen Slemmer?
Christa Pike murdered 19-year old classmate Colleen Slemmer in 1995, tricking her into the woods where she was then attacked and killed by Pike and two friends.
In the weeks and days leading up to the murder, Pike had begun to think that Slemmer - who was a classmate in a Jobs Corp programme in Tennessee - was thinking about stealing her boyfriend.
Speaking about her late daughter, May called her an "outcast" at the programme, where she'd complained to her mother that she was being picked on.
Recalling the last time she and Slemmer spoke before her murder, May recalled their final phone call, which was cut short due to a lack of phone signal.
"You miss a lot," she said on the 30 years of memories following the murder of Slemmer. "You miss the holidays, you miss the birthdays, you miss Mother’s Days and stuff like that."