Tennessee officials have released detailed media guidelines ahead of the scheduled execution of Christa Pike, the only woman currently on Tennessee’s death row.

The Tennessee Department of Correction issued the advisory on September 14, confirming that Pike’s execution remains scheduled for September 30, 2026, at Riverbend Maximum Security Institution in Nashville.

The announcement does not itself change Pike’s legal status or confirm that the execution will ultimately take place. Tennessee’s Supreme Court order allows the execution to proceed on September 30 unless the court or another appropriate authority orders otherwise.

The state has now begun making practical preparations for the event, including establishing designated areas for members of the media and setting deadlines for reporters seeking access.

TENNESSEE SETS THE DATE FOR SEPTEMBER 30
According to the Tennessee Department of Correction, media members who intend to cover Pike’s scheduled execution must register with the department in advance.

The execution is scheduled to take place at 10 a.m. CDT on September 30 at Riverbend Maximum Security Institution.

Media check-in will begin at 7:30 a.m., while access to the designated Riverbend parking area will close at 8:30 a.m.

The department said roads on or adjacent to state property will be kept clear of vehicles and pedestrians during the event.

The announcement is one of several official preparations Tennessee has made during September.

The state previously selected seven official media witnesses, along with an alternate, to observe the execution if it proceeds.

Those witnesses include representatives from the Associated Press, WVLT, The Nashville Banner, Roane County News, WBIR, WKRN and WPLN.

WHO IS CHRISTA PIKE?
Pike was convicted in connection with the 1995 killing of 19-year-old Colleen Slemmer, a fellow student at the Knoxville Job Corps.

Pike was 18 years old at the time of the crime.

She was convicted of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit first-degree murder and received a death sentence in 1996.

Her case has remained in the courts for decades.

Tennessee’s Supreme Court eventually set September 30, 2026, as the execution date after determining that Pike had completed the standard three-tier appeals process and that no legal reason prevented the state from scheduling the execution.

If the execution proceeds, Pike would become the first woman executed by Tennessee in more than two centuries, according to multiple reports.

THE STATE HAS ALREADY SELECTED MEDIA WITNESSES
The Department of Correction announced on September 11 that seven Tennessee news organizations had been selected to provide official media witnesses.

The Associated Press is among those organizations.

The witnesses were selected through a process established under Tennessee law and the Department of Correction’s rules.

An alternate witness was also selected in case one of the designated reporters is unable to participate.

The selection of witnesses is part of Tennessee’s normal execution procedures and does not represent a new judicial decision in Pike’s case.

PIKE’S ATTORNEYS ARE STILL SEEKING CLEMENCY
Although the state is preparing for the scheduled execution, Pike’s legal team is continuing efforts to have her death sentence changed.

Her attorneys recently submitted a 226-page clemency petition to Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee.

The petition asks the governor to commute Pike’s death sentence to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.

The clemency petition focuses heavily on Pike’s childhood and circumstances surrounding the 1995 crime.

Her lawyers argue that Pike experienced severe abuse and neglect during childhood and that those experiences should have been given greater consideration when her punishment was determined.

They also point to her age at the time of the crime and her subsequent decades in prison.

The clemency request is separate from the state’s execution preparations.

THE PETITION DESCRIBES HER CHILDHOOD HISTORY
According to the Death Penalty Information Center, Pike’s clemency petition describes a childhood involving repeated sexual abuse, rape and neglect.

Her attorneys also point to mental-health diagnoses made after she was incarcerated, including bipolar disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder.

Those claims form part of Pike’s legal team’s argument for clemency.

They do not dispute that Pike was convicted of the 1995 killing.

Instead, the petition asks the governor to consider her development, background and circumstances when deciding whether her death sentence should be carried out.

The state has not announced a final decision on the clemency request.

A SEPARATE CHALLENGE TARGETS TENNESSEE’S EXECUTION METHOD
Pike has also challenged Tennessee’s lethal-injection procedure.

Her attorneys filed a lawsuit arguing that the state’s execution protocol violates her constitutional rights and conflicts with her religious beliefs.

The current Tennessee protocol relies on pentobarbital as the sole drug used for lethal injection.

Her lawyers have raised concerns about the protocol in light of her medical circumstances and have also challenged restrictions concerning spiritual advisers during the hours immediately preceding an execution.

The litigation has produced hearings in Tennessee courts.

A special master previously concluded that Pike had not met the legal standard required for her challenge to the state’s lethal-injection procedure, although related legal filings remain active.

A HEARING WAS HELD IN AUGUST
A court hearing took place in August to examine Pike’s challenge to the execution protocol.

One issue involved her medical condition, including thrombocytosis, a blood disorder.

The hearing was overseen by Senior Judge Mark Ward.

Pike’s attorneys argued that her medical circumstances raised concerns about the state’s ability to carry out the execution under its current protocol.

The state disputed those arguments.

The proceedings did not result in the September 30 execution date being automatically canceled.

HER RELIGIOUS CLAIM IS ALSO PART OF THE CASE
Pike’s attorneys have argued that Tennessee’s restrictions on spiritual advisers interfere with her Buddhist religious beliefs.

Under the state’s execution procedures, communication with certain spiritual advisers is restricted during the final period before an execution.

Her lawyers have argued that those restrictions place a burden on her religious practice.

The litigation therefore involves not only questions about the execution drug but also the way Pike would be permitted to practice her religion during her final hours if the execution proceeds.

THE SUPREME COURT PREVIOUSLY SET THE EXECUTION DATE
The Tennessee Supreme Court issued its order setting Pike’s execution date in September 2025.

The court considered the state’s request to establish an execution date after Pike had completed the standard appeals process.

Pike opposed the request and asked the court to issue a certificate of commutation to the governor.

The court denied that request and granted the state’s motion to set the execution date.

The order specifies September 30, 2026, unless another court or appropriate authority intervenes.

That language remains important because the current Department of Correction media advisory is an operational announcement rather than a new judicial ruling.

WHY THE SEPTEMBER 30 EXECUTION WOULD BE HISTORIC
If carried out, Pike’s execution would be notable for several reasons.

She is currently the only woman on Tennessee’s death row.

She was 18 when the crime occurred.

And Tennessee has not executed a woman since the early 19th century.

Multiple Tennessee news outlets have reported that Pike would be the first woman executed by the state since 1819.

The case has therefore attracted national and international attention beyond the original crime and decades of appeals.

HER ATTORNEYS CONTINUE TO ASK FOR A DIFFERENT SENTENCE
The clemency petition submitted to Gov. Bill Lee represents one of Pike’s remaining avenues for avoiding the scheduled execution.

Her lawyers are asking that the death sentence be replaced with life imprisonment without parole.

The petition emphasizes factors that were either not presented to the original sentencing jury in the same way or that Pike’s current attorneys argue deserve greater consideration today.

Among those factors are her age at the time of the crime, her childhood experiences and her subsequent development during nearly three decades of incarceration.

The governor has not publicly announced a final decision on the petition.

THE VICTIM REMAINS CENTRAL TO THE CASE
Pike’s legal efforts do not erase the fact that the case began with the death of Colleen Slemmer.

Slemmer was 19 years old when she was killed in Knoxville in January 1995.

Pike was convicted for her role in the crime.

The original prosecution resulted in a death sentence, while the other individuals involved received different punishments.

Pike’s current legal team is asking authorities to reconsider her sentence based on the circumstances surrounding her life and development, rather than disputing the historical fact of her conviction.

TENNESSEE IS NOW PREPARING FOR THE POSSIBLE EXECUTION
The September 14 media advisory demonstrates that the Department of Correction is proceeding with the practical preparations required for the scheduled execution.

Media organizations must register.

Official witnesses have been selected.

A designated media area has been established.

Check-in times have been announced.

And the department has issued specific instructions concerning access to the Riverbend facility on September 30.

Those preparations are consistent with the state continuing to treat September 30 as the scheduled execution date.

They do not, however, prevent a court or the governor from taking further action before that date.

THE FINAL DAYS ARE APPROACHING
With September 30 now only days away, Pike’s legal team is pursuing the remaining avenues available to her.

The clemency petition remains before Gov. Lee.

The litigation challenging Tennessee’s execution procedure continues.

And the state has already made arrangements for media coverage should the execution proceed.

At the same time, organizations and individuals outside the legal proceedings have publicly called for clemency.

Amnesty International, for example, has urged Gov. Lee to stop the execution, reflecting the organization’s longstanding opposition to the death penalty.

Those advocacy positions are separate from the legal questions currently before Tennessee officials and courts.

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?
The next major development could come from several different directions.

Gov. Bill Lee could make a decision on Pike’s clemency petition.

A court could issue another ruling affecting the execution.

Or, if no intervention occurs, Tennessee Department of Correction officials will proceed according to the existing schedule on September 30.

The state’s official execution order remains in place unless another appropriate authority changes it.

For now, Tennessee is continuing its preparations.

Pike’s attorneys are continuing their legal and clemency efforts.

And the state is treating September 30 as the scheduled date for the execution.

SOURCES
TENNESSEE DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTION — EXECUTION ADVISORY AND MEDIA GUIDELINES