1. Add your name to the Standard
Stand behind the eight standards for lawful, transparent and humane execution practices. We will share the total, never your personal details, with the governor's reviewers and the General Assembly.
2. Write to Gov. Bill Lee
Use the governor's official contact form[1] or call the governor's office at (615) 741-2001. Copy the letter below, add your name and city, and send it.
Subject: Fair and transparent execution practices in Tennessee Dear Governor Lee, I am writing about the failed execution of Christa Pike on September 30, 2026, the second failed execution in Tennessee this year. Whatever one believes about the death penalty, Tennesseans should be able to trust that when the state carries out its most serious act, it does so lawfully, competently and in the open. Thank you for ordering a third-party review and pausing executions. I respectfully ask that you: 1. Keep the review fully independent of the Department of Correction and the Attorney General's office, and release its findings to the public, as you did with the 2022 report. 2. Release the current execution protocol, with only staff identities redacted. 3. Require independent testing of execution drugs and share the results with the courts. 4. Adopt a clear stop rule: if an execution does not go as intended, it stops, emergency medical care is provided, and no further attempt is made without a court hearing. 5. Give witnesses full view and sound of the process from start to finish. 6. Keep executions paused until these changes are in place. I also ask that Colleen Slemmer's family be kept informed and treated with care throughout this process. They have waited more than thirty years. Respectfully, [Your name] [City, ZIP]
3. Write to your Tennessee legislators
Find your state senator and representative with the General Assembly's Find My Legislator tool[2]. Each profile lists an email address and office phone.
Subject: Please act on execution transparency and oversight in the next session Dear [Senator / Representative] [Last name], I am your constituent in [City]. After the failed execution of Christa Pike on September 30, 2026, and the failed execution of Tony Carruthers in May, I am asking you to support legislation in the coming session that: 1. Requires the execution protocol to be public, with only staff identities redacted. 2. Requires independent testing of execution drugs, with results provided to the courts. 3. Puts a stop rule in law: a failed attempt ends the process, emergency medical care is provided, and no new attempt happens without a court hearing. 4. Guarantees witnesses full view and sound of every execution. 5. Creates independent oversight of execution procedures outside the Department of Correction. 6. Holds public hearings on the findings of the governor's review. This is not about whether Tennessee should have the death penalty. It is about whether our state carries out its laws competently and openly. I would appreciate knowing where you stand. Thank you, [Your name] [Street address, City, ZIP]
4. Share the Standard
Tennessee gave Christa Pike two lethal doses and she survived. It is the state's second failed execution this year. Whatever you think of the death penalty, the state owes the public competence and transparency. Read the Standard: https://christapike.org/reform.html
For 48 minutes the curtain was closed and witnesses could only listen. Anything the state does in our name should happen in plain view. 8 standards for fair execution practices: https://christapike.org/reform.html