COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio lawmakers are again debating the future of capital punishment after two attempts to execute Tennessee prisoner Christa Pike by lethal injection failed, leaving her hospitalized, according to information available Monday, Oct. 5, 2026. Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, a Republican, has halted executions during his time in office. He has said pharmaceutical companies have threatened to stop supplying Ohio with other medications if the state uses their drugs in executions. Earlier this year, DeWine also said he no longer considers the death penalty an effective deterrent to violent crime and believes Ohio should abolish it. That position remains contested at the Statehouse. House Speaker Matt Huffman, a Republican from Lima, has pledged to oppose efforts to repeal the death penalty. Other Republican lawmakers have proposed allowing nitrogen gas as an alternative execution method if lethal-injection drugs cannot be obtained. Rep. Adam Mathews, a Republican from Lebanon, is taking a different position. He is co-sponsoring House Bill 72, which would prohibit Ohio from purchasing lethal-injection drugs and, in practice, end executions under the state’s current method. “The state should not be in the business of administering death,” Mathews said Monday, citing his opposition to state-administered death in cases involving abortion, medically assisted suicide and people convicted of serious crimes. He said the failed execution in Tennessee underscored that “the state can make mistakes.” Mathews said opposing executions does not diminish the harm caused by violent crimes. “Once you have brought someone into jail, the state should not be in the business of executing these people,” he said. Rep. Jamie Callender, a Republican from Concord, was in Tennessee when news of the failed execution emerged. He described the details as “sickening.” Rep. Beryl Brown Piccolantonio, a Democrat from Gahanna and a member of the House Judiciary Committee, said the episode showed the complications involved in lethal injection. She said Ohio is “stuck” and called for renewed discussion about whether capital punishment is appropriate. The next General Assembly could see further debate over capital punishment, including new legislation, according to the lawmakers. The dispute puts Ohio’s existing execution moratorium alongside a broader policy question: whether the state should resume executions if it can obtain drugs or permanently end the practice. A spokesperson for Republican gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy called what happened in Tennessee “blatantly unacceptable” and said Ramaswamy supports the death penalty in only the most egregious cases, with due process. The campaign of Democratic candidate Amy Acton did not respond to a request for comment on the failed execution. In June, Acton said she would uphold the law and respect Ohio’s current moratorium.