In the cold glare of the execution chamber, May Martinez expected an ending.
She had carried her daughter’s murder for nearly three decades, traveling from Florida to Tennessee to watch the state do what it promised.
Instead, she witnessed a system falter in real time: curtains drawn and redrawn, media ushered out, officials whispering,
and the woman who tortured and killed her child surviving two rounds of lethal injection.
When someone finally explained, it was with sterile language about “protocol” and “medical care.”
Martinez’s response was raw: “They f***** up.” Experts now warn Christa Pike may have suffered brain damage from delayed resuscitation, while the state insists every approved step was followed. For Martinez, none of that fixes the chaos, or the years of grief. She remembers Colleen as a 19‑year‑old who loved computers and roller rinks—and vows, once again, to be her voice.
