Tennessee Death Row Inmate Compares Herself to Lindsay Clancy Before State Execution

A Tennessee Death Row inmate says she feels a true connection with Lindsay Clancy, saying they share "uniquely female issues" as she faces state execution for her crimes this week.

Christa Pike, 48, will be executed by lethal injection Wednesday at Riverbend Maximum Security Institution in Nashville for the brutal 1995 murder of 19-year-old Colleen Slemmer. Recently, Pike sat down for a wide-ranging interview with The Times during which she made the Clancy comparison.

She told the reporter ... “I feel a kinship with Lindsay. We are both females who got into trouble because of uniquely female issues. One thing is different, however, is that times have changed a lot on awareness of women’s issues since I was put on trial."

Pike also said she's pleased Clancy was given a mistrial and is now receiving the care she needs, referring to Clancy's treatment at a psychiatric hospital where she's currently a patient. Pike noted there are many women like herself who do not get the treatment they require.

In January 1995, Pike, then 18, her boyfriend, Tadaryl Shipp, 17, and their mutual friend, Shadolla Peterson, 18, brought Slemmer to an isolated wooded area of Tennessee under the pretext of smoking weed.

Once there, Pike and Shipp violently attacked Slemmer for 30 minutes, pulverizing her with their fists while slicing her with a meat cleaver and box cutter as Peterson just watched. During the attack, Slemmer kept on asking, “Why are you doing this to me,” according to court docs.

Pike delivered the fatal blow, using a chunk of asphalt to bash Slemmer in the head. She then carved a Pentagram -- the sign of satanic imagery -- into Slemmer's chest and took home a piece of Slemmer's skull as a trophy.

Pike was arrested 3 days later and confessed to police that she murdered Slemmer because she thought Slemmer was trying to steal her boyfriend. In March 1996, a judge sentenced her to death for the slaying. Shipp, however, was sentenced to life with the possibility of parole, but was denied in 2025 during his latest bid for freedom. 

Peterson received a suspended sentence and avoided prison altogether after testifying against Pike and Slemmer at their trial.  

As for Clancy, she strangled her 3 young children and then tried to commit suicide by jumping out of a second-floor window at her Massachusetts home. Clancy ended up paralyzed from the waist down and confined to a wheelchair.

During her recent murder trial, prosecutors argued that Clancy knew exactly what she was doing when she killed her kids. But Clancy's defense attorney claimed she was suffering from postpartum depression psychosis and was, therefore, not responsible for the murders. 

Eleven of the 12 jurors agreed with the defense, believing Clancy was not responsible because of her psychosis. However, there was one holdout juror who, in the end, prompted a mistrial.

The holdout, Michael Desronvil, spoke on Fox News this week ... addressing the noise surrounding his decision and why he wants the focus to be on the loss of Clancy's 3 kids.

A status conference is scheduled for today to determine next steps in the case.