In January 1995, 18-year-old Job Corps student Christa Pike, along with Tadaryl Shipp and Shadolla Peterson, lured 19-year-old classmate Colleen Slemmer to an abandoned steam plant near the University of Tennessee, where Slemmer was tortured and killed. Pike was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to death; she is scheduled to be executed on September 30, 2026.
On January 12, 1995, Colleen Slemmer, a 19-year-old student at the Job Corps Center in Knoxville, Tennessee, was killed at an abandoned steam plant near the University of Tennessee campus. According to court testimony and later reporting, Slemmer was lured to the isolated location by classmate Christa Pike, then 18, who believed Slemmer was pursuing her boyfriend, fellow student Tadaryl Shipp. A third student, Shadolla Peterson, allegedly acted as lookout while Pike and Shipp attacked Slemmer. Testimony described a roughly thirty-minute assault in which Slemmer was taunted, beaten, and cut, including a pentagram carved into her chest, before Pike fatally struck her with a chunk of asphalt. Pike reportedly kept a piece of Slemmer's skull afterward and showed it to others at the school, which along with dormitory sign-out logs contributed to the arrest of Pike, Shipp, and Peterson within roughly 36 hours of the killing. Detectives reportedly recovered the skull fragment from Pike's jacket pocket, and Pike confessed to police, stating the group had intended only to frighten Slemmer.
Pike, Shipp, and Peterson were each charged with first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit first-degree murder. Peterson agreed to cooperate with the prosecution and received probation after pleading guilty to being an accessory after the fact. Shipp, who was 17 at the time of the killing, was tried as an adult; prosecutors sought life without parole for him and a death sentence for Pike. On March 22, 1996, a jury convicted Pike on both counts after several hours of deliberation, and on March 30, 1996, she was sentenced to death for the murder and to 25 years for conspiracy. In January 1997, Shipp was also convicted on both counts; after the jury could not unanimously agree on a life-without-parole sentence, the judge imposed life with parole eligibility plus a consecutive 25-year sentence for conspiracy.
Pike's case underwent an extended appeals process in Tennessee state courts, including a period in 2002 in which she asked to waive further appeals and be executed, before reversing that decision; a state appellate panel allowed her appeals to continue. A request for a new trial was denied in December 2008, exhausting her state remedies. Pike's attorneys then pursued federal habeas relief beginning in May 2014, arguing ineffective assistance of counsel, mental illness, and constitutional challenges to Tennessee's capital punishment procedures. A federal district court denied relief in March 2016, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit unanimously affirmed that denial on August 22, 2019.
While incarcerated, Pike was convicted in 2003/2004 of the attempted first-degree murder of fellow inmate Patricia Jones, for which she received a 25-year sentence. A 2012 investigation also uncovered an alleged escape plot involving a corrections officer and an outside individual; Pike was not charged in connection with that plot. In September 2025, the Tennessee Supreme Court issued a death warrant scheduling Pike's execution for September 30, 2026.
Abandoned steam plant near University of Tennessee, Knoxville
Case status
solved
Case timeline
1995-01-12
Colleen Slemmer is lured to an abandoned steam plant near the University of Tennessee campus and killed; Christa Pike, Tadaryl Shipp, and Shadolla Peterson are arrested within roughly 36 hours.
1996-03-22
Christa Pike is found guilty of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit first-degree murder.
1996-03-30
Pike is sentenced to death for murder and 25 years in prison for conspiracy.
1997-01
Tadaryl Shipp is found guilty on both counts and sentenced to life with parole eligibility plus a consecutive 25-year term.
2001-08-24
Pike allegedly attacks and attempts to strangle fellow inmate Patricia Jones.
2002-08-02
A three-judge state appeals panel rules Pike's appeal proceedings should continue, halting a scheduled execution.
2004-08-12
Pike is convicted of attempted first-degree murder for the attack on Patricia Jones.
2008-12
Pike's request for a new trial is denied, exhausting state appeals.
2012-03
An alleged prison escape plot involving Pike, a corrections officer, and an outside individual is uncovered; Pike is not charged.
2016-03-11
US District Judge Harry Sandlin Mattice Jr. denies Pike's federal habeas petition.
2019-08-22
The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals unanimously upholds the denial of Pike's federal appeal.
2023-10
Knox County Criminal Court Judge Scott Green denies Pike's renewed request to reopen her conviction and sentence.
2025-09-30
The Tennessee Supreme Court issues a death warrant scheduling Pike's execution for September 30, 2026.
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Titles and descriptions are the creators’ own and may not reflect current legal status; see the dossier above for sourced case facts.
VIDEO
That Chapter / 24 min
The Disturbing Case of Christa Pike
People
Shadolla Peterson
CONVICTED
Pleaded guilty to being an accessory after the fact and received probation
Christa Pike
CONVICTED
Convicted of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit first-degree murder; sentenced to death
Patricia Jones
VICTIM
Fellow inmate whom Pike was convicted of attempting to murder in 2001
Colleen Slemmer
VICTIM
19-year-old Job Corps student killed on January 12, 1995
Tadaryl Shipp
CONVICTED
Convicted of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit first-degree murder; sentenced to life with parole eligibility plus 25 years
Roles reflect public records and court outcomes at the time of writing — supporting citations are on file under Sources.
In January 1995, 18-year-old Job Corps student Christa Pike, along with Tadaryl Shipp and Shadolla Peterson, lured 19-year-old classmate Colleen Slemmer to an abandoned steam plant near the University of Tennessee, where Slemmer was tortured and killed. Pike was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to death; she is scheduled to be executed on September 30, 2026.
Where did the murder happen?
Abandoned steam plant near University of Tennessee, Knoxville.
Who was convicted?
Shadolla Peterson (Pleaded guilty to being an accessory after the fact and received probation), Christa Pike (Convicted of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit first-degree murder; sentenced to death), and Tadaryl Shipp (Convicted of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit first-degree murder; sentenced to life with parole eligibility plus 25 years).
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