@truecrimemomtok: Christa Pike is scheduled to be executed by lethal injection in Tennessee on September 30, 2026. And as that date gets closer, we’re going to hear a lot about Christa. Her age when the crime happened. Her childhood. Her mental health. Her decades on death row. And the arguments over whether Tennessee should execute her. But before all of that discussion takes over, I think we need to talk about Colleen Slemmer. Because Colleen is the reason this case exists. Colleen was just 19 years old in January 1995. She was attending the Job Corps program in Knoxville, Tennessee, where she met 18-year-old Christa Pike. On January 12, Colleen left the Job Corps center with Pike, Pike’s boyfriend Tadaryl Shipp, and another student, Shadolla Peterson. Colleen never came back. According to court records, Colleen was taken to an isolated area near the University of Tennessee agricultural campus, where she endured a prolonged and horrific attack. She was beaten, kicked, cut and stabbed. Court records describe defensive wounds and injuries consistent with Colleen trying to crawl away. During the attack, Colleen begged them to stop. Ultimately, Colleen suffered devastating blunt-force injuries to her head. A pentagram had been carved into her body, and Pike later showed another student a piece of Colleen’s skull that she had taken from the scene. Think about that for a second. Colleen was 19. She had a mother. She had people who loved her. She had an entire life ahead of her. Her mother, May Martinez, later spoke about the unimaginable pain of losing her daughter, saying that you cannot understand what it feels like to lose a child unless you have experienced it yourself. Pike was convicted of premeditated first-degree murder and conspiracy and sentenced to death in 1996. She remains the only woman on Tennessee’s death row. If her execution proceeds September 30, she will become the first woman executed by Tennessee in more than 200 years. There are legitimate conversations happening right now about Pike’s mental health, her traumatic childhood, her age at the time of the murder and even Tennessee’s method of execution. Her attorneys are currently challenging aspects of how the execution would be carried out. Those conversations can happen. But I don’t want Colleen Slemmer to become a footnote in Christa Pike’s story. Christa Pike has had more than 30 years for people to learn her name. So as September 30 approaches, remember this one too: Colleen Slemmer. She was 19 years old. And whatever your opinion is on the death penalty or whether Christa Pike should be executed, Colleen deserves to remain at the center of the conversation. Photo 1: Colleen Slemmer Photo 2-3: Christa Pike then and now #truecrimetok #truecrimestory #deathrow #tennessee #crimetiktok

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Sunday 23 August 2026 13:26:07 GMT