A Tennessee woman convicted of murder survived two attempts to execute her by lethal injection, forcing the state to halt its remaining scheduled execution this year.&nbsp;Christa Pike, 50, was set to become the first woman to be executed in Tennessee in 200 years. The US Supreme Court cleared the way for her execution on Wednesday, but the attempt failed.&nbsp;Pike survived two doses of the lethal injection and was later taken to an off-site medical facility, according to the Tennessee Department of Correction.&nbsp;Her lawyers said she was taken to a nearby hospital but that they had not been informed about her condition.&nbsp;"Tonight the State of Tennessee once again failed to carry out a lawful execution," Pike's attorneys said in a statement.<h2>Tennessee halts execution after two failures</h2>The failed execution came months after another lethal injection attempt was stopped in Tennessee.In May, the state halted the execution of Tony Carruthers after medical staff were unable to find a vein to administer the drugs.&nbsp;After Pike's failed execution, Tennessee Governor Bill Lee called for a "comprehensive, third-party review" of the state's execution process.&nbsp;"The remaining scheduled execution will not be carried out this year," Lee said. The statement appeared to refer to the execution of convicted killer Gary Wayne Sutton, which was scheduled for December 3.Robin Maher, executive director of the Death Penalty Information Centre, described Pike's execution attempt as an unprecedented failure.&nbsp;"This event is the worst we've seen and unlike any other botched execution in the modern era," Maher told The New York Times. "There is no precedent."&nbsp;The Tennessee Department of Correction said it had "followed every step of the state's lawful, established execution protocol" before Pike was taken to the medical facility.&nbsp;Also Read: <a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/j-k-on-heightened-alert-after-major-encounter-security-intensified-across-districts-1790835318697">J&amp;K on heightened alert after major encounter; security intensified across districts</a><h2>What is pentobarbital and how does lethal injection work?</h2>Pentobarbital is a barbiturate and anaesthetic used in lethal injection procedures in several US states, including Tennessee. The drug is meant to make a prisoner unconscious. The process is then intended to cause paralysis and cardiac arrest, leading to death.&nbsp;Some states use a combination of three drugs for lethal injections, while others use pentobarbital as the only drug.&nbsp;Lethal injection is the main method used for executions in the US. It is used by the federal government, the US military and 31 states that allow the death penalty. According to the Death Penalty Information Centre, the US has carried out 1,492 executions through lethal injection since 1976.&nbsp;Obtaining drugs used in executions has become increasingly difficult because drug manufacturers have resisted supplying them.&nbsp;As a result, some states have started using different drugs and drug combinations. This has led to some prolonged executions in which prisoners showed signs of pain and distress.&nbsp;Some states have also obtained drugs from compounding pharmacies that are not regulated by the US Food and Drug Administration.<h2>How often do executions go wrong?</h2>According to Al Jazeera, Austin Sarat examined executions in the US between 1890 and 2010 in his 2014 book Gruesome Spectacles: Botched Executions and America’s Death Penalty.&nbsp;Sarat found that 276 of the 8,776 executions during that period went wrong in some way. That was about 3.15 per cent of all executions.&nbsp;He also found that lethal injection had the highest rate of botched executions during that period, at 7.2 per cent.

Christa Pike survived two lethal injection attempts in Tennessee, prompting Governor Bill Lee to order a review and halt the state’s remaining scheduled execution this year.

A Tennessee woman convicted of murder survived two attempts to execute her by lethal injection, forcing the state to halt its remaining scheduled execution this year. Christa Pike, 50, was set to become the first woman to be executed in Tennessee in 200 years. The US Supreme Court cleared the way for her execution on Wednesday, but the attempt failed. Pike survived two doses of the lethal injection and was later taken to an off-site medical facility, according to the Tennessee Department of Correction. Her lawyers said she was taken to a nearby hospital but that they had not been informed about her condition. "Tonight the State of Tennessee once again failed to carry out a lawful execution," Pike's attorneys said in a statement. Tennessee halts execution after two failures The failed execution came months after another lethal injection attempt was stopped in Tennessee. In May, the state halted the execution of Tony Carruthers after medical staff were unable to find a vein to administer the drugs. After Pike's failed execution, Tennessee Governor Bill Lee called for a "comprehensive, third-party review" of the state's execution process. "The remaining scheduled execution will not be carried out this year," Lee said. The statement appeared to refer to the execution of convicted killer Gary Wayne Sutton, which was scheduled for December 3. Robin Maher, executive director of the Death Penalty Information Centre, described Pike's execution attempt as an unprecedented failure. "This event is the worst we've seen and unlike any other botched execution in the modern era," Maher told The New York Times. "There is no precedent." The Tennessee Department of Correction said it had "followed every step of the state's lawful, established execution protocol" before Pike was taken to the medical facility. Also Read: J&K on heightened alert after major encounter; security intensified across districts What is pentobarbital and how does lethal injection work? Pentobarbital is a barbiturate and anaesthetic used in lethal injection procedures in several US states, including Tennessee. The drug is meant to make a prisoner unconscious. The process is then intended to cause paralysis and cardiac arrest, leading to death. Some states use a combination of three drugs for lethal injections, while others use pentobarbital as the only drug. Lethal injection is the main method used for executions in the US. It is used by the federal government, the US military and 31 states that allow the death penalty. According to the Death Penalty Information Centre, the US has carried out 1,492 executions through lethal injection since 1976. Obtaining drugs used in executions has become increasingly difficult because drug manufacturers have resisted supplying them. As a result, some states have started using different drugs and drug combinations. This has led to some prolonged executions in which prisoners showed signs of pain and distress. Some states have also obtained drugs from compounding pharmacies that are not regulated by the US Food and Drug Administration. How often do executions go wrong? According to Al Jazeera, Austin Sarat examined executions in the US between 1890 and 2010 in his 2014 book Gruesome Spectacles: Botched Executions and America’s Death Penalty. Sarat found that 276 of the 8,776 executions during that period went wrong in some way. That was about 3.15 per cent of all executions. He also found that lethal injection had the highest rate of botched executions during that period, at 7.2 per cent.

Christa Pike survived two lethal injection attempts in Tennessee, prompting Governor Bill Lee to order a review and halt the state’s remaining scheduled execution this year.

Tennessee woman survives two lethal injections: How does it work and how often do executions go wrong?

A German doctor was put on trial on Monday (July 14) for allegedly killing 15 patients with lethal injections and playing "master of life and death" over patients under his care. The 40-year-old palliative care physician, identified by German media as Johannes M, is suspected of having killed 12 women and three men between September 2021 and July 2024, while practicing in Berlin. The doctor is accused of having injected victims, who were between 25 and 94 years old, with lethal mixtures of sedatives and in other instances burning down their houses in an attempt to cover up his crimes.&nbsp;The defendant had “visited his patients under the pretext of providing medical care”, state prosecutor Philipp Meyhoefer said at the beginning of the trial in the Berlin state court. Johannes M had planned "house calls, already with the intention of killing" and exploited his patients' faith in him as a physician, Meyhoefer explained further. "He acted with disregard for life... and behaved as the master of life and death." &nbsp;A colleague initially raised concerns about Johannes M last July when he became suspicious that so many of his patients had died in fires, Die Zeit newspaper reported. He was arrested in August last year, as prosecutors initially charged him with four deaths. But further investigations revealed a multitude of other suspicious cases, and in April prosecutors indicted Johannes M. on 15 counts of murder. Another 96 cases are under investigation, a spokesman for the prosecutors was quoted saying to AFP, including the death of Johannes M's mother-in-law. She had been ill with cancer and died under mysterious circumstances over the same weekend Johannes M and his wife traveled to see her in Poland early in 2024, according to media reports. The suspect allegedly qualified as a radiologist and an general practitioner before proceeding to specialise in palliative medicine.&nbsp;According to Die Zeit, he submitted a doctoral thesis in 2013 examining the reasons for a string of murders in Frankfurt, which began with the question "Why do people kill?"&nbsp;In the indictment against Johannes M, prosecutors said the physician had "injected his patients with an anaesthetic and a muscle relaxant. without their knowledge or consent.". The relaxant "paralysed the respiratory muscles, causing respiratory arrest and death within minutes".<h2>‘No motive beyond killing’&nbsp;</h2>Prosecutors said that he has "no motive beyond killing" and are calling for a life sentence. The case is reminiscent of that of infamous German nurse Niels Hoegel, who was sentenced to life in 2019 after being convicted of killing 85 patients.&nbsp;Hoegel, who is believed to be modern Germany's most prolific serial killer, killed hospital patients through lethal injections between 2000 and 2005, before he was finally apprehended in the act.&nbsp;In more recent times, a 27-year-old nurse received a life sentence in 2023 for killing two patients by intentionally giving them unprescribed medication. A nurse was tried last month in Aachen charged with injecting 26 patients with heavy doses of sedatives or painkillers, killing nine of them.&nbsp;Last week, German police uncovered that they are investigating another suspected serial killer doctor who has allegedly killed several of their predominantly elderly patients. Police and prosecutors said investigators are "examining" deaths attributable to the physician in the northern German town of Pinneberg, on the outskirts of Hamburg.

Who is ‘Doctor Death’, accused of killing patients with lethal injections in Germany? Trial begins for murders

A German doctor was put on trial on Monday (July 14) for allegedly killing 15 patients with lethal injections and playing "master of life and death" over patients under his care. The 40-year-old palliative care physician, identified by German media as Johannes M, is suspected of having killed 12 women and three men between September 2021 and July 2024, while practicing in Berlin. The doctor is accused of having injected victims, who were between 25 and 94 years old, with lethal mixtures of sedatives and in other instances burning down their houses in an attempt to cover up his crimes. The defendant had “visited his patients under the pretext of providing medical care”, state prosecutor Philipp Meyhoefer said at the beginning of the trial in the Berlin state court. Johannes M had planned "house calls, already with the intention of killing" and exploited his patients' faith in him as a physician, Meyhoefer explained further. "He acted with disregard for life... and behaved as the master of life and death." A colleague initially raised concerns about Johannes M last July when he became suspicious that so many of his patients had died in fires, Die Zeit newspaper reported. He was arrested in August last year, as prosecutors initially charged him with four deaths. But further investigations revealed a multitude of other suspicious cases, and in April prosecutors indicted Johannes M. on 15 counts of murder. Another 96 cases are under investigation, a spokesman for the prosecutors was quoted saying to AFP, including the death of Johannes M's mother-in-law. She had been ill with cancer and died under mysterious circumstances over the same weekend Johannes M and his wife traveled to see her in Poland early in 2024, according to media reports. The suspect allegedly qualified as a radiologist and an general practitioner before proceeding to specialise in palliative medicine. According to Die Zeit, he submitted a doctoral thesis in 2013 examining the reasons for a string of murders in Frankfurt, which began with the question "Why do people kill?" In the indictment against Johannes M, prosecutors said the physician had "injected his patients with an anaesthetic and a muscle relaxant. without their knowledge or consent.". The relaxant "paralysed the respiratory muscles, causing respiratory arrest and death within minutes". ‘No motive beyond killing’ Prosecutors said that he has "no motive beyond killing" and are calling for a life sentence. The case is reminiscent of that of infamous German nurse Niels Hoegel, who was sentenced to life in 2019 after being convicted of killing 85 patients. Hoegel, who is believed to be modern Germany's most prolific serial killer, killed hospital patients through lethal injections between 2000 and 2005, before he was finally apprehended in the act. In more recent times, a 27-year-old nurse received a life sentence in 2023 for killing two patients by intentionally giving them unprescribed medication. A nurse was tried last month in Aachen charged with injecting 26 patients with heavy doses of sedatives or painkillers, killing nine of them. Last week, German police uncovered that they are investigating another suspected serial killer doctor who has allegedly killed several of their predominantly elderly patients. Police and prosecutors said investigators are "examining" deaths attributable to the physician in the northern German town of Pinneberg, on the outskirts of Hamburg.

The 40-year-old palliative care specialist, named by German media as Johannes M, is alleged to have killed 12 women and three men between September 2021 and July 2024 while working in Berlin

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Tennessee woman survives two lethal injections: How does it work and how often do executions go wrong?

Who is ‘Doctor Death’, accused of killing patients with lethal injections?