Doctor in botched Tennessee execution had not placed central line in 13 years

The physician who oversaw the failed execution of death row inmate Christa Pike had not inserted a central intravenous line in 13 years, the New York Post, People.com, and MEAWW News reported, citing court documents. Dr. Mark Fowler, 69, was appointed by the Tennessee Department of Correction and served as the lead physician during Pike's execution in September. Investigators later determined that the intravenous lines were improperly placed, causing pentobarbital to seep into the tissue of her arms rather than entering her bloodstream. [1][4][5]

Pike, who is 50 years old, survived two doses of lethal injection in September, according to the Daily Express. Her attorneys had filed a complaint nine months prior to the execution warning that her condition could render the lethal injection painful and dangerous due to a disorder linked to a rare form of cancer. Following the execution, her legal team believed she was brain dead, but she later regained consciousness and began speaking. [2][3]

Pike is now involved in a legal dispute from her infirmary bed at the Debra K. Johnson Rehabilitation Center in Tennessee, the Daily Express reported. She filed an urgent legal application with a federal judge to prevent prison authorities from returning her to a violent wing. As FTMQ News reported earlier, Pike was sentenced to death in 1996 for the 1995 murder of her classmate Colleen Slemmer in Knoxville. [2][3][6][9][10]

The New York Post reported that Fowler also served as the lead physician during another failed execution attempt of death row inmate Tony Carruthers earlier this year. Depositions revealed that Fowler admitted he lacked hospital privileges or authorization to insert central lines. [1]