One in three Americans back second execution try after failed one, Reuters/Ipsos poll
In short
A Reuters/Ipsos poll found 33% of American adults say a second execution attempt should be made on inmates who survive the first, while 39% prefer life in prison. The poll followed the 30 September lethal injection of Christa Pike in Tennessee, which she survived.
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A Reuters/Ipsos poll found that 33% of American adults think a second attempt should be made to execute inmates who survive the first, while 39% supported life in prison instead. The New York Post said 26% were not sure which approach was better, and described the result as minority public support for trying again. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
The poll followed the case of Christa Pike, 50, who received two doses of the state's lethal injection drug pentobarbital in Tennessee on Sept. 30 and survived, The Hill reported. She was taken to a Nashville area hospital by ambulance and regained consciousness five days later. The New York Post said she was critically ill with severe arm injuries and called it Tennessee's second botched lethal injection this year. She was later discharged and is back at the Deborah K. Johnson Rehabilitation Center, the women's prison where she was housed for 30 years, according to The Hill. She was sentenced to death for the 1995 beating and stabbing death of classmate Colleen Slemmer. [ 2 , 3 ]
The Hill reported that 52% of Republicans and 24% of Democrats support a second execution attempt. On the death penalty itself, 80% of Republicans and 39% of Democrats supported it. [ 2 ]
Overall, 55% of respondents supported the death penalty for people convicted of the most serious crimes, down from 63% in a 2017 poll. About 31% opposed it, and 13% did not know or did not answer. [ 2 , 3 ]
According to The Hill, the nationwide poll was conducted online with 1,679 U.S. adults on Oct. 16-19 and had a margin of error of 2 percentage points. The New York Post said it was completed on Monday. [ 2 , 3 ]
The New York Post wrote that the issue has taken on new significance as courts consider whether states can make a second execution attempt after a failed one. It said the U.S. Supreme Court recently allowed a state to proceed with scheduling a second execution date after a failed attempt. It also said 23 U.S. states have abolished capital punishment, and that states that still impose it have struggled to obtain execution drugs, with some considering other methods including firing squads. [ 3 ]
Why it matters
The New York Post said Tennessee now faces the question of whether to try again to execute Pike, and that courts are considering whether states can make a second attempt. The poll shows minority public support for a second attempt.
Key facts
- In the Reuters/Ipsos poll, 33% of U.S. adults said a second execution attempt should be made on inmates who survive the first, and 39% supported life in prison instead. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- Christa Pike, 50, survived a lethal injection with two doses of pentobarbital in Tennessee on Sept. 30. [ 2 , 3 ]
- 52% of Republicans and 24% of Democrats support a second execution attempt, according to The Hill. [ 2 ]
- 55% of respondents support the death penalty for people convicted of the most serious crimes, down from 63% in a 2017 poll; 31% oppose it. [ 2 , 3 ]
- The online poll surveyed 1,679 U.S. adults on Oct. 16-19 and had a margin of error of 2 percentage points, according to The Hill. [ 2 ]
Confirmed by several sources
- A Reuters/Ipsos poll found 33% of Americans back a second execution attempt after a failed one, against 39% who favour life in prison. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- Christa Pike survived a lethal injection in Tennessee and regained consciousness five days later. [ 2 , 3 ]
- Support for the death penalty for the most serious crimes stands at 55%, down from 63% in 2017, with 31% opposed and 13% unsure or not answering. [ 2 , 3 ]
Still unclear
- Whether Tennessee will try to execute Pike a second time. The New York Post describes this as a question Tennessee now faces; the documents give no decision.
- Pike's condition after the execution attempt. The New York Post said she was critically ill with severe arm injuries; The Hill said she was later discharged from hospital and is back at the women's prison. Only the New York Post gives the injuries.