Tennessee Department of Correction Commissioner Frank Strada has resigned, three days after the failed execution of Christa Pike. Governor Bill Lee announced the resignation on October 3 and said Strada will step down later this month.

Pike survived two rounds of lethal injection drugs during her attempted execution on September 30. She remains unconscious and on a ventilator at a Nashville-area hospital, her attorneys said.

Lee has ordered an independent review of what went wrong and halted all executions in the state for the rest of 2026. Former US Attorney Ed Stanton will lead the review, which will check whether the protocol was followed.

Two of the three execution attempts under Strada in 2026 failed. A May attempt on Tony Carruthers was called off when the team could not set the needed IV lines.

Strada said he continues to believe the department acted in line with protocol, but stepping aside was in the best interest of Tennesseans. Pike’s lawyers called the resignation justified but said it reflected a systemic failure far beyond one person.