Christa Pike killed Colleen Slemmer, and she boasted of the murder not hid it. This made her one of the youngest women on death row.
Pike is one of the youngest women convicted of a heinous crime but still alive.
She was convicted of killing Slemmer in the Knoxville wood in Tennessee on January 12, 1995. One difference she had from other killers is that she bragged about it, unlike others, reported All That's Interesting.
Troubled teen and why she committed murder
Pike was only one of many who had a chaotic life and couldn't cope, resulting in dysfunctional behavior. She did not finish her schooling too.
Compared to most convicted felons, she killed someone under the age of consent. Barely 18-years old, she got to have the distinction of the youngest woman getting the death penalty in America.
One of the reasons cited for taking Slammers' life is a combination of reasons that led to a tragic result for both killer and victim. As a teen, she suffered a fit of irrational jealousy, had a liking for occultism and satanism as only one reason. At one point, having experienced poverty with unstable family life, and finally, a drug problem that compounded things.
Her early life
From Christa Pike's start, her mother was less than attentive and preferred to party with drugs. She grew up neglected, and her dad did not care about his daughter. Her grandmother, who took care of her, died when she was twelve years old. Lack of care might have changed the odd of getting to death row.
She started problems with drugs like marijuana, leaving school, and caught for petty crimes like shoplifting. Charged and spent a month in juvenile detention and entered Job Corps for nurse technician training.
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While training, she met Tadaryl Shipp, which led to her not finishing the Nurse Technician program and soon ending one life. One life ended meant one had to pay for it eventually.
Murder in Knoxville forest
Shipp was one of the trainees in the program "Job Corps," he was part of culinary arts. Like Pike, Shipp had a problematic background that involved gang membership. It is where the pair found mutual attraction in devil worship and occultism. They drew in a third member, Shadolla Peterson, another one of the program's misfits.
Soon, Colleen Slemmer's arrival to the program to take up computer technology would bring her to Pike's attention. The two would be at each other's throats because, according to Christa, the other girl was after her boyfriend.
Pike convinced both Shipp and Peterson that her rival needs to be sacrificed to Satan to get her revenge. Which the two agreed with and went with the plan.
January 11, 1995, Kim Iolio was told by Pike that Slemmer would be slain because she was mean. But the other girl dismissed it as talk.
The night that followed, they lured the victim into the woods for some marijuana. It was too late for Slemmer and was assaulted and killed viciously by Pike and Shipp. Peterson kept watching for warning of anyone coming unexpectedly. Both assailants attacked till the victim died.
The convicted killer and investigation
Christa Pike confessed to the crime and added she wanted the victim to go away. The assault was described, which earned her place on death row. She still awaits her execution date.
