\t\t\t<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t <\/p>\n \tRelated story \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\tGlobal Turmoil Is Taking a Toll on Your Teen’s Mental Health. Here’s How to Help Them Deal\t\t<\/p>\n <\/span><\/p><\/div>\n \t\t<\/a><\/p>\n<\/article>\n \t \n\tHere\u2019s what to know about the drug and what happened inside the execution chamber.<\/p>\n \n\tPentobarbital, sometimes sold under the brand name Nembutal, is a short-acting barbiturate, a type of drug that slows down the central nervous system, according to the Cleveland Clinic<\/a>. The DEA<\/a> classifies it as a Schedule II controlled substance.<\/p>\n \n\tIn a medical setting, it\u2019s used in much smaller amounts. Approved uses include sedation, short-term treatment of insomnia<\/a>, preparing patients for anesthesia, and emergency control of certain severe seizures. Veterinarians also use it to euthanize animals.<\/p>\n \n\tAfter sharing her final words, Pike appeared to be in pain. WPLN reporter Catherine Sweeney said Pike \u201clifted her head up\u201d and \u201csaid that there was a spot that was burning and hurting and asked if that was normal,\u201d 6 News on Your Side<\/em><\/a> reported. \u201cNone of it was normal,\u201d Sweeney added.<\/p>\n \n\tPike began snoring, and witnesses were asked to leave at 8:53 p.m. while she was still breathing. The AP\u2019s Kim Chandler described her as \u201cloudly snoring, clearly very alive,\u201d per CBS News<\/a>. Shortly after, an ambulance took her to a hospital.<\/p>\n \n\tOfficials haven\u2019t said. The Tennessee Department of Correction maintained that it \u201cfollowed every step\u201d of the protocol.<\/p>\n \n\tPike\u2019s attorneys disagreed. \u201cWe take no pleasure in being right, but the concerns raised by Ms. Pike proved to be true: difficult vein access, blown veins, degraded pentobarbital, no emergency medical care available when things inevitably go wrong, all under a protocol that remains veiled in secrecy,\u201d they said in a statement to CBS News<\/a>.<\/p>\n \n\tAs of Oct. 1, Pike\u2019s condition was unknown. Gov. Bill Lee said her execution remains under a stay<\/a>, paused all Tennessee executions for the rest of 2026, and called for a third-party review of the protocol.<\/p>\n \n\tPike was sentenced to death for the 1995 murder of 19-year-old Colleen Slemmer, a fellow Knoxville Job Corps student, when Pike was 18.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n![\"Mom](\"https:\/\/www.sheknows.com\/wp-content\/themes\/vip\/pmc-sheknows-2020\/assets\/public\/lazyload-fallback.gif\")
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\n<\/section>\n<\/p>\n\n\t\tWhat Is Pentobarbital?\t<\/h2>\n
\n\t\tWhat Happened During Christa Pike\u2019s Execution?\t<\/h2>\n
\n\t\tWhy Didn\u2019t It Work?\t<\/h2>\n
\n\t\tWhat Happens Now?\t<\/h2>\n