Christa Pike, who remains on ventilator after her failed execution, was not the only one who was found guilty of the 1995 murder of Colleen Slemmer. Two accomplices, including her boyfriend Tadaryl Shipp, were charged, but Pike was the only one who ended up on death row.
Slemmer was a 19-year-old Job Corps participant when she was tortured and murdered behind the agriculture campus steam plant on January 12, 1995, per the University of Tennessee Knoxville. Pike had two accomplices – 17-year-old Tadaryl Shipp and 18-year-old Shadolla Peterson.
UTK said that Slemmer endured a “lengthy beating and torture.” “Testimony indicated that Pike created the plan because she thought Slemmer was interested in her boyfriend (Shipp),” the university said.
Where is Tadaryl Shipp now?
Shipp was convicted of first-degree murder and conspiracy first-degree murder. He is currently incarcerated at the Northwest Correctional Complex in Tiptonville, Tennessee, per ABC10.
Shipp was denied parole in October 2025 “due to the seriousness of the offense.” His case is scheduled to be reviewed again in October 2031, per WCNC.
Jurors could not consider the death penalty for Shipp because he was 17 years old at the time of Slemmer’s murder.
Peterson, 18 at the time of the murder, became an informant and was convicted of being an accessory. The University of Tennessee Knoxville says that she just received parole.
Peterson is believed to have served as the lookout during the crime.
WVLT reported that Peterson served six years probation. She has maintained a private life since.
Christa Pike update
Pike remains on a ventilator with hospital staff working to save her life and clear the pentobarbital she was administered from her system, her attorneys said, according to The Guardian. She received two doses of the drug in a failed attempt by the state of Tennessee to execute her on Wednesday, September 31.
Pike’s attorneys stated in a court filing that they believed problems with intravenous lines caused the pentobarbital to flow into her body instead of her bloodstream.
The Death Penalty Information Center states that the last execution of a woman in Tennessee was in 1820. This means Pike would have been the first woman to be executed in the state in more than 200 years.