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Christa Pike

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Christa Pike
Born
Christa Gail Pike

(1976-03-10) March 10, 1976 (age 48)
West Virginia
NationalityAmerican
Criminal statusAwaiting execution on death row
Parent(s)Glenn Pike and Carissa Hansen
RelativesUnnamed half-sister
MotiveJealousy
Conviction(s)Conspiracy to commit murder,
Murder — March 22, 1996
Criminal penaltyDeath — March 30, 1996
Time at large
2 days
Details
VictimsColleen Slemmer
DateJanuary 12, 1995
CountryUnited States
State(s)Tennessee
Location(s)University of Tennessee
WeaponsAsphalt and knife
Date apprehended
January 14, 1995; 29 years ago (1995-01-14)

Christa Gail Pike (born March 10, 1976) is the youngest woman to be sentenced to death in the United States during the post-Furman period.[1] She was 20 when convicted of the torture murder of a classmate she committed at age 18.

Pike lived a troubled life and dropped out of high school. She joined the Job Corps, a government program aimed at helping low-income youth by offering vocational training and career skills, and attended the now-closed Job Corps center in Knoxville, Tennessee. Pike fell for a young man named Tadaryl Shipp, one year her junior. Together they "dabbled" in the occult and devil worship.[2]

Crime

Pike became jealous of 19-year-old fellow student Colleen Slemmer, who she thought was trying to "steal" her boyfriend from her; friends of Slemmer deny the accusations. Along with friend Shadolla Peterson, 18, Pike planned to lure Slemmer to an isolated, abandoned steam plant close by on the University of Tennessee campus.[2]

On January 12, 1995, Pike, Shipp, Peterson, and Slemmer signed out of the dormitory and proceeded to the woods, where Slemmer was told they wanted to make peace by offering her some marijuana.[2] Upon arrival at the secluded location, Slemmer was attacked by Pike and Shipp while Peterson acted as lookout. Per later court testimony, for the next thirty minutes Slemmer was taunted, beaten, and slashed, and a pentagram was carved in her chest.[3][4] Finally, Pike smashed Slemmer's skull with a large chunk of asphalt, killing her. Pike kept a piece of her victim's skull.[2]

Pike began to show off the piece of skull around the school, and within thirty-six hours the three were arrested. The log book showed that the four of them left together and only three returned. They also found the piece of skull in Pike's jacket pocket. The girls' rooms were searched and a copy of the Satanic Bible was found in Shipp's. Pike insisted they were merely trying to scare her and it got out of control.[2]

Trial

There was evidence and a confession. Pike was charged with murder and conspiracy to commit murder. On March 22, 1996 after only a few hours of deliberation, Pike was found guilty on both counts. On March 30, 1996, Pike was sentenced to death by electrocution for the murder charge and 25 years in prison for the conspiracy charge. Shipp received a life sentence with the possibility of parole in 2028.[2] Peterson, who had turned informant, received probation for pleading guilty to being an accessory.[4]

Appeal of conviction

Following the guilty verdict, Pike "launched, cancelled and then re-launched" an appeal of her conviction in the Tennessee state courts.[5] In June 2001, then again in June 2002, against the advice of her lawyers, Pike asked the courts to drop her appeal and sought to be executed via electrocution. Criminal Court Judge Mary Beth Leibowitz granted the request and an execution date of August 19, 2002, was set.[6] Pike soon thereafter changed her mind and on July 8, 2002, defense lawyers filed a motion to allow the appeal process to continue. This motion was denied. However, on August 2, 2002 a three judge state appeals court panel ruled that the proceedings should be continued and the execution was not carried out.[7] In December 2008, Pike's latest request for a new trial was turned down and she was returned to death row.[5] This denied request is believed to be the final allowed under the appeals procedures in the State of Tennessee.[8] As of May 2014, no execution date has been set and her case has now entered the federal court system.[9] A federal court has denied a request to release and overturn the death penalty conviction.[10]

Attempted murder conviction

On August 24, 2001, Pike (with alleged assistance from inmate Natasha Cornett) attacked and attempted to strangle fellow inmate Patricia Jones with a shoe string, and nearly succeeded in choking her to death. She was convicted of attempted first degree murder on August 12, 2004.[11] Although it is the position of the Tennessee Department of Corrections that Natasha assisted in this crime, their investigators concluded there was insufficient evidence to charge her with helping Pike attack Jones.[12]

Attempted prison break

In March 2012, it was revealed that Pike had made escape plans involving corrections officer Justin Heflin and a New Jersey man named Donald Kohut. Kohut had visited Pike in prison, but complete details of his relationship to Pike were not immediately known. The attempted prison break was thwarted by a joint investigation involving the Tennessee Department of Corrections, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation and the New Jersey State Police.[13]

In popular culture

The murder of Colleen Slemmer was featured on Deadly Women, Killer Kids, Killed by Gossip, ‘’For My Man’’ and Snapped: Killer Couples.

See also

References

  1. ^ "Chattanooga Federal Judge Upholds Conviction of Christa Pike, Who Carried out Torture Murder Of Romantic Rival". The Chattanoogan. March 17, 2016. Retrieved June 6, 2017.
  2. ^ a b c d e f Will Kern (April 22, 2001). "Angel's Face, Devil's Heart". The Straits Times.
  3. ^ Rejected Appeal, Knoxville News Dec 21 2008
  4. ^ a b Hearing Resumes, Knoxville News April 7, 2008
  5. ^ a b Judge Denies Appeal, Knoxville News Dec 11 2008
  6. ^ Execution Date Set, Florida Times Union June 27, 2002,
  7. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2008-12-02. Retrieved 2009-12-22. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  8. ^ Pike's Final Appeal, Knoxville News Dec 4 2008
  9. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2014-06-08. Retrieved 2014-05-13. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  10. ^ Mike Donila: Federal court denies Pike's request to overturn death penalty, WBIR-TV, 11 March 2016
  11. ^ Women on Death Row, Tennessee Department of Correction.
  12. ^ Love and Hate on Death Row, The Tennessean July 6 2003, Available on Prison Talk Online
  13. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2013-01-27. Retrieved 2012-04-16. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
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