@LauraBurstein1

Communications professional dedicated to criminal justice reform

 Washington, D.C.
Joined May 2012
  • Tweets5.7K
  • Following736
  • Followers2.4K
168Media
Despite multiple botched executions, officials insist prisoners’ concerns are “speculative.” This morning, TN death row prisoners seek to supplement challenge to state’s flawed lethal injection protocol. Read more here: tinyurl.com/47ksr33p

New Filings: Citing Horrific Failed Executions, Tennessee Death Row Prisoners Seek to Supplement...

For Immediate Release: October 22, 2026 Contact: Laura Burstein, [email protected] New Filings: Citing Horrific Failed Executions, Tennessee Death Row Prisoners Seek to Supplement Challenge...

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.@Tennessean: Tennessee paid $1.2M for execution drugs amid secrecy, failures: exclusive tennessean.com/story/news/20…

Tennessee paid $1.2M for execution drugs amid secrecy, failures: exclusive

Records reveal Tennessee spent $1.175 million on lethal injection drugs since 2023, but their source and cost per dose remain secret.

tennessean.com
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BRKG ATTY STMT: AL Gov. commutes #ToforestJohnson’s death sentence. “We are grateful to Governor Ivey for diligently reviewing Toforest’s case and taking action to spare an innocent man from execution.” More here: tinyurl.com/5bcursv9

Brking Atty Stmt: AL Gov. Grants Clemency to Death Row Prisoner Toforest Johnson with Innocence...

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE—October 20, 2026 Media Contacts: Ty Alper, Berkeley Law Death Penalty Clinic [email protected]; Kathryn Hamoudah, Southern Center for Human Rights khamoudah@sch...

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From @EvanMealins in @Tennessean: Tennessee sought execution advice four years ago. Did it follow it? tennessean.com/story/news/co…

Tennessee sought execution advice four years ago. Did it follow it?

In 2022, Tennessee ordered an investigation into its capital punishment, then the state failed to fully follow the advice given.

tennessean.com
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npr.org/2026/10/07/nx-s1-599…

Drugs in jars, bags of cash: Tennessee ignored warnings from Arizona's botched executions

Christa Pike's botched execution in Tennessee was not the first to go wrong on Frank Strada's watch. Before he took charge of Tennessee's prisons, Strada oversaw three botched executions in Arizona.

npr.org
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Tennessee lawmaker calls for public hearing after Christa Pike survives execution attempt wkrn.com/news/tennessee-news…

Tennessee lawmaker calls for public hearing after Christa Pike survives execution attempt

State Rep. Jody Barrett (R-Dickson) said lawmakers should publicly examine Tennessee’s execution procedures when the General Assembly returns in January.

wkrn.com
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New: Timeline of the recklessness and secrecy that led to TN’s preventable and predictable botched executions and how to prevent future problems. Read more here: tinyurl.com/4pb9xxt6

New: Timeline, Sourced Materials Re: TN's Preventable Botched Executions

A TIMELINE OF THE RECKLESSNESS AND SECRECY THAT LED TO TENNESSEE’S PREVENTABLE AND PREDICTABLE BOTCHED EXECUTIONS AND HOW TO PREVENT FUTURE PROBLEMS (Thursday, October 8, 2026) The following narrat...

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The Key Witness Against Richard Glossip Just Returned to Court. It Didn’t Go Well. by @lilianasegura, @chronic_jordan theintercept.com/2026/10/06/…

The Key Witness Against Richard Glossip Just Returned to Court. It Didn’t Go Well.

Decades after blaming Richard Glossip for his own actions, Justin Sneed is less credible than ever — and prosecutors know it.

theintercept.com
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BRKG ATTY STMT re: TDOC Commissioner Resignation: “Strada’s resignation does not change the fact that Tennessee is shrouding its executions in secrecy … Until there is transparency and accountability, botched executions will keep happening.” More here: tinyurl.com/nsfbup7h

BRKING ATTY KIT THOMAS STMT RE: RESIGNATION OF TN DOC COMMISSIONER FRANK STRADA

Breaking: Attorney Kit Thomas Statement re: TDOC Commissioner Frank Strada Resignation “Frank Strada’s resignation does not change the fact that Tennessee is shrouding its executions in secrecy. When...

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nytimes.com/2026/10/02/us/fr…

Tennessee Prison Chief Was Hired Despite a Trail of Troubled Executions

The failed execution of Christa Pike has prompted new scrutiny of Frank Strada, who resigned as the state’s top prison official on Saturday, and his past role overseeing executions in Arizona.

nytimes.com
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Today is International Wrongful Conviction Day — and we want to remind you of Charles Don Flores, a man wrongfully convicted and sentenced to death by the state of Texas. You can sign the petition to stop the execution of Charles Flores here: actionnetwork.org/petitions/…
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.@NPR: Failed 'torturous' execution attempt on Christa Pike reignites death penalty debate npr.org/2026/10/02/nx-s1-598…

Failed 'torturous' execution attempt on Christa Pike reignites death penalty debate

The botched execution in Tennessee of Christa Pike, who survived despite being subject to two doses of lethal injection on Wednesday, has reignited furious debate about the death penalty in the U.S.

npr.org
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.@ArizonaMirror: How a Tennessee execution gone wrong connects to Arizona’s capital punishment troubles azmirror.com/2026/10/01/how-…

How a Tennessee execution gone wrong connects to Arizona's capital punishment troubles

The official who oversaw Arizona's 2022 execution troubles now runs Tennessee's prison department, where a woman's execution was botched Wednesday

azmirror.com
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‘Some of the medication has worn off’: Witness recalls failed Tennessee execution of Christa Pike nbcnews.com/news/us-news/-me… via @nbcnews

‘Some of the medication has worn off’: Witness recalls failed Tennessee execution of Christa Pike

The failure of the injection that was intended to kill Pike, 50, led the governor to order an investigation and halt the one remaining execution scheduled for this year.

nbcnews.com
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.@guardian: Calls grow for US death penalty halt after ‘torturous’ botched execution of Christa Pike theguardian.com/us-news/2026…

Calls grow for US death penalty halt after ‘torturous’ botched execution of Christa Pike

Pike alive but in critical condition as experts call ordeal that unfolded in Tennessee ‘unimaginably barbaric’

theguardian.com
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.@nytimes: Tennessee Botches One Execution After Another, Despite Repeated Warnings nytimes.com/2026/10/02/us/te…

Tennessee Botches One Execution After Another, Despite Repeated Warnings

The failed attempt with Christa Pike has intensified bipartisan concerns about Tennessee’s ability to effectively carry out lethal injections.

nytimes.com
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New Atty Stmt re: TN's Persistent Execution Maladministration: “These problems will keep happening until Tennessee takes meaningful steps to increase transparency, oversight, and accountability in the execution process.” More here: tinyurl.com/4hfscu5e

New: Statement from Nashville Attorneys on TN's Persistent Execution Maladministration

For Immediate Release: Thursday, October 1, 2026 Contact: [email protected], [email protected] Statement of Attorneys for the Federal Public Defender, Middle District of Tennessee, on...

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Laura Burstein retweeted
Breaking News
@BreakingNewsOct 1
BREAKING: Tennessee death row inmate Christa Pike is still alive after two lethal injections, her lawyer says in a motion to again halt the execution. nbcnews.com/news/us-news/ahe…

Christa Pike: What to know about the case of Tennessee death row inmate

Christa Pike, 50, was 18 when she murdered classmate Colleen Slemmer. She was due to be the first woman the state had executed in more than 200 years.

nbcnews.com
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.@washingtonpost: He got the death sentence 24 years ago. A judge just freed him after plea deal. washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/…

He got the death sentence 24 years ago. A judge just freed him after plea deal.

Justin Michael Wolfe’s case once attracted national attention as an example of suburban youths dabbling in the worlds of drugs and death.

washingtonpost.com
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.@myrgvnews editorial re: #MelissaLucio: “This week’s ruling isn’t likely to answer the many questions in the case  … At the very least, those questions leave too weak a base upon which to carry out her execution.” myrgv.com/alerts-brh/2026/09…

Editorial: Appellate court ruling in Melissa Lucio case won’t change many minds

Mariah Alvarez was 2 years old when she died from injuries to her head and other parts of her body in February 2007.

myrgv.com
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