Judge allows Tennessee death row inmates to include botched executions in lawsuit

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — Two failed executions in Tennessee are now at the center of a growing legal battle over the state’s lethal injection protocol after a judge ruled in favor of death row inmates Friday.

A Davidson County judge ruled death row inmates can expand their lawsuit to include new allegations stemming from the botched executions of Tony Carruthers and Christa Pike.

The original lawsuit, filed in March 2025, argues Tennessee’s death penalty protocol violates the constitutional rights of death row inmates with complex medical conditions.

More than one year later, the state then failed to execute two inmates: Tony Carruthers and Christa Pike.

Carruthers was set to be executed May 2026, but Tennessee Department of Correction medical staff couldn’t find a vein to place the IV line, and Gov. Bill Lee called off the execution and issued Carruthers a one-year stay of execution.

In September, Pike was scheduled to be executed. She received two doses of the lethal injection drug but survived. According to court filings, TDOC medical staff noted potential “blown veins” before administering the drugs.

The attorney for the death row inmates argued those details are important to include in the original lawsuit.

“Plaintiffs wish to plead facts regarding Tennessee’s failures under the challenged protocol, including the botched executions of Tony Carruthers and Christa Pike,” Elijah Swiney, the attorney for the plaintiffs, argued Friday.

Tennessee Assistant Attorney General John W. Ayers argued the plaintiffs weren’t legally allowed to add the details of the two botched executions to the original lawsuit, and they needed to file a separate complaint.

“They’re not arguing that they have a new claim to plead based on new facts. They’re just trying to fix a pleading deficiency,” Ayers told the court.

However, the judge ruled in favor of the death row inmates and granted their attorney’s request to add the new details of the botched executions to their original suit.

But he stopped short of making a decision on any other matters.

“I’m not ruling on all these things that are lurking under the surface,” Chancellor Russel Perkins of the Davidson County Chancery Court said.

The judge also instructed the two parties to agree on a timeline for next steps, giving the state an opportunity to challenge the new claims. His ruling does not determine whether Tennessee’s death penalty protocol is constitutional.

Source: newsnationnow.com, Tori Gessner, November 7, 2026

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