Convicted Tennessee killer Christa Pike is scheduled for execution. The U.S. Supreme Court has vacated a last-minute stay that had temporarily halted the execution, which would make Pike the first woman executed in Tennessee since the early 1800s.

The Supreme Court approved Tennessee’s request to lift the stay, initiated Wednesday morning by the U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals. This decision allows the state to proceed with Pike’s execution. The Sixth Circuit had issued a 2-1 split decision to delay the execution “until further notice” as motions filed by Pike’s attorneys and the Tennessee Attorney General’s Office were being considered.

Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor, along with Justices Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson, dissented from the decision. Sotomayor emphasized the importance of allowing the Sixth Circuit to fully consider Pike’s pending legal challenges. She argued that, in capital cases, acknowledging potential errors and respecting appellate courts’ judgments is critical before making irreversible decisions.

Pike, now 50, was 18 at the time of the 1995 murder of Colleen Slemmer, a 19-year-old classmate. Pike, her boyfriend, and another person brutally attacked Slemmer in an incident described in court documents as “satanic.” This attack, which Pike claimed lasted 30 minutes to an hour, involved beating, kicking, and stabbing the victim.

In capital cases, appreciation of our own fallibility, and respect for the judgment of an appellate tribunal, demand caution before acting irretrievably.

Pike and Slemmer knew each other through Knoxville’s Job Corps Center. Pike accused Slemmer of pursuing her boyfriend and claimed she “just felt mean” the day before the murder. Armed with a box cutter and meat cleaver, Pike and her accomplices lured Slemmer under false pretenses before the attack began.

During the attack, Pike’s boyfriend, Tadaryl Shipp, prevented Slemmer’s escape while Pike inflicted injuries with a box cutter. Despite Slemmer’s pleas for her life, the assault continued. Shipp carved pentagrams into Slemmer’s face and chest. At trial, forensic experts noted satanic elements in the crime and described it as an instance of collective aggression.

Forensic psychiatrist Dr. William Bernet characterized the incident as involving elements of both satanism and group violence. Dr. Eric Engum testified about Pike’s severe borderline personality disorder, cannabis dependence, and depression. Though no signs of brain damage or insanity were identified, Pike’s actions post-murder were shocking. She kept a piece of Slemmer’s skull as a trophy, and openly bragged about her actions.

While Pike faces execution, her accomplices did not receive the death penalty. Shipp was below the eligible age for capital punishment, and Peterson testified for the state. Pike’s supporters argue her defense failed to highlight mitigating factors such as untreated bipolar disorder and PTSD from domestic violence and sexual assault.

Approximately 25,000 people have petitioned Governor Bill Lee to commute her sentence to life imprisonment.