The head of Tennessee's prison system is resigning after the state's failed lethal injection of convicted murderer Christa Pike left her hospitalized and on a ventilator.Tennessee Department of Correction Commissioner Frank Strada will step down this month, Gov.Bill Lee said Saturday.In a statement distributed by the governor's office, Strada said stepping aside was "in the best interest of Tennesseans" while an independent review examines what went wrong during the botched execution."I believe this review is entirely appropriate and necessary, and I look forward to doing everything I can to help determine exactly what occurred," Strada said.FILE - Strada said stepping aside was "in the best interest of Tennesseans" amid an independent review of the failed execution.
(AP Photo/George Walker IV)DEATH ROW INMATE UNCONSCIOUS ON VENTILATOR AFTER BOTCHED EXECUTION FOR TEEN’S KILLING: ATTORNEYSLee said Strada served with integrity, adding that he appreciates his "willingness to put the interests of Tennesseans first during this difficult moment.""I have accepted his decision to step down and am grateful for his commitment to ensuring a smooth leadership transition," Lee said.Pike, 50, was injected with two doses of pentobarbital on Wednesday night, and prison officials used at least seven needles while trying to find a vein.Pike was heard crying, whimpering, and breathing loudly during the execution, according to a Friday court filing from her lawyers.Christa Gail Pike would have been the first woman executed in Tennessee since 1819 for the brutal 1995 murder of Colleen Slemmer.(Tennessee Department of Correction via AP)CHRISTA PIKE’S BOTCHED LETHAL INJECTION TAKES FOCUS OFF VICTIM, JEOPARDIZES EXECUTION: FORMER POLICE CHIEFShe was taken to the hospital, where she had to be intubated and put on a ventilator, her lawyers said.In a statement obtained by The Associated Press, Pike's four-person legal team celebrated the departure of Strada but said it wasn't enough."Wh...