The first female scheduled to be executed in two centuries in Tennessee has received a reprieve after so-called “serious concerns” emerged.

As NBC News reported, the Sixth Court of Appeals on Wednesday granted convicted murderer Christa Pike a stay of execution roughly an hour before it was scheduled to be carried out.

The stay came after a judge agreed to consider whether the sexual abuse Pike suffered as a child was considered when she was first sentenced.

Judge Jane Branstetter Stranch said her decision was a “short stay of execution” while the argument is reviewed.

“The court has stayed this, recognizing the serious concerns about Christa’s scheduled execution,” stated Stephen Ferrell of the Federal Defenders Services of Eastern Tennessee.

NBC notes that the Supreme Court appeared to be Pike’s remaining chance for a reprieve after Tennessee Governor Bill Lee said he was upholding her death sentence “after deliberate consideration.”

The Court denied her petition Tuesday evening.

Regardless of the horrors of Pike’s past, the horrific crime that she committed in January 1995 near the University of Tennessee in Knoxville is absolutely worthy of the death penalty.

Here are the details via the Daily Mail:

Pike was convicted at the age of 18 in March 1996 for brutally stabbing and beating Knoxville Job Corps student Colleen Slemmer to death.

Her boyfriend, Tadaryl Shipp, and an accomplice, Shadolla Peterson, also helped lure Slemmer to a wooded area before the couple tortured her to death.

The pair carved a pentagram into the teen’s chest, and Peterson testified that he saw Pike also carve something into Slemmer’s head, police evidence showed. Pike also took a piece of her skull as a souvenir, according to investigators.

Slemmer attempted to run for her life, but the couple captured her again and continued the gruesome torture that lasted about 30 minutes to an hour, Pike estimated.

The Daily Mail also notes that Pike demanded earlier this month that she be spared a lethal injection because of her Buddhist beliefs.

She instead requested that an all-female firing squad carry out her execution.

The post Execution of Murderess in Tennessee HALTED by Court After “Serious Concerns” Are Raised – Would Have Been First Woman Executed in State in Over 200 Years appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

It’s been a decade since former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick sparked headlines — and quite a bit of ire and controversy — over his attempts to have an uncomfortable conversation about social justice reform.

Kaepernick felt that the best way to go about his cause was to kneel during the traditional performance of “The Star-Spangled Banner” before major sports games.

Those antics did not go over well, with swaths of Americans who felt that Kaepernick’s demonstration was beyond disrespectful to the U.S. flag and country.

It was a legitimate PR nightmare for the NFL, as its viewership took a noticeable hit during Kaepernick’s protests.

Those ratings have since rebounded, and, to be clear, “bad” NFL ratings are still multiples higher than other television programming.

But that doesn’t mean the NFL has any interest in revisiting that controversy anytime soon.

Alas, the internet was none too pleased with the NFL this week after an actual star quarterback (Kaepernick was largely a back-up in 2016) was seen “disrespecting” America during Monday Night Football.

The Chicago Bears, minus their star quarterback Caleb Williams, stomped all over the Philadelphia Eagles in a 27-7 home win.

Williams is out with a hamstring injury, but still accompanied the team ahead of the big primetime match-up.

The NFL opened up Monday night’s festivities with a mariachi band playing the national anthem (which drew its own criticisms).

See if you can spot “Iceman” (a nickname which Williams has been trying to lift from NBA legend George Gervin) during this recital:

The Mariachi Herencia de México performed the national anthem in Chicago pic.twitter.com/6Sv20SBqIr

— ESPN (@espn) September 29, 2026

If you fast forward to right about the 49-second mark, you can clearly see Williams in his sweats, wearing sunglasses, and casually strolling on the sideline. That was in stark juxtaposition to the other Bears and Eagles players and coaches, who were standing at attention for the anthem.

Christian sports pundit Jon Root actually had little issue with the mariachi band. His focus was on Williams.

“I may be in the minority here, but I thought the mariachi band playing the United States National Anthem for Monday [Night] Football was kinda cool,” Root posted. “The problem people should have is Caleb Williams disrespecting the flag by walking around during the Anthem.”

Other X users echoed these sentiments, with one posting: “Caleb Williams too good for the national anthem? Just wandering the sideline.”

Notably, this isn’t the first time that Williams has been questioned about his behavior during the national anthem.

As Fox News pointed out, Williams was similarly grilled last season when he was spotted hamming it up with a teammate during “The Star-Spangled Banner.”

10/10 National Anthem. No notes. pic.twitter.com/byEsg27xzE

— NFL (@NFL) September 9, 2025

The Bears will host the woeful New York Jets on Sunday. Williams is not expected to play, as he continues to recover from his injury.

This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.

The post Bears QB Caleb Williams Accused of ‘Disrespecting the Flag’ During National Anthem appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

President Trump on Wednesday announced the last American forces are leaving Iraq.

The President took a shot at George W. Bush, Barack Obama and Joe Biden as he labeled the operation a “quagmire.”

Trump said that unlike Biden’s botched Afghanistan withdrawal, there will be an orderly departure.

Trump’s full statement:

Today, I am pleased to announce, that the last American Forces are leaving Iraq!

It has been a long time, with very bad decision-making that got us involved in this quagmire in the first place, but soon, that will be part of History. This is a Great Day for America and, importantly, we leave with Iraq having a wonderful new Prime Minister, Ali al-Zaidi, somebody I supported from the beginning and fully endorsed.

He won an Election that he was not expected to win, and did so, in a landslide!

Launched in 2003 under the presidency of George W. Bush, and continued under the Administration of Barack Hussein Obama in 2014, and Sleepy Joe Biden, Operation Inherent Resolve ends in 2026 under the leadership of President Donald J. Trump. This Day is a victory for the United States, a victory for Iraq, and a decisive victory over ISIS, which has been completely decimated by the Trump Administration, First Term, along with other very bad and dangerous players.

Unlike Afghanistan, where much Military Equipment and everything else was left behind, and 13 Warriors lie dead, with many badly wounded, this orderly departure of Coalition forces and equipment from Erbil Air Base marks the end of a very expensive excursion into Hell. I set a clear mission, gave our Commanders the tools to finish it, and refused to let a temporary presence become a permanent one.

I had a choice to stay or to leave, and felt, without question, that it was time for America to go home! Prime Minister al-Zaidi, is outstanding, and he will hopefully be able to handle things very well. We came to fight a caliphate. There is no longer a caliphate. We are going home! President DONALD J. TRUMP

The post President Trump Takes a Shot at Bush, Obama and Biden as He Announces Last American Forces Are Leaving Iraq appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

Senate Democrats blocked a House-passed congressional stock trading ban that had a voter ID requirement attached to it on Wednesday.

The “Stop Insider Trading Act,” which needed 60 votes to advance, failed in a 53-47 vote.

Every single Democrats voted to block the bill.

The bill would block members of Congress, their spouses and children from purchasing new stocks.

The Hill reported:

Senate Democrats on Wednesday blocked a bill sponsored by vulnerable GOP incumbent Pete Ricketts (Neb.) to restrict members of Congress from buying new stocks of publicly traded companies, arguing the legislation didn’t go far enough to crack down on possible corruption.

The Stop Insider Trading Act failed by a vote of 53-47. No Democrat voted in support of the measure.

It needed 60 votes to advance on the Senate floor.

Schumer called the voter ID bill a “poison pill” on Tuesday after Senate Majority Leader Thune announced the vote.

“The poison pill that will gut mail voting that has failed six times…” Schumer said.

WATCH:

Schumer: Voter ID is a “poison pill” that would “gut mail voting.” pic.twitter.com/u0Rz24nAJ4

— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) September 29, 2026

The post JUST IN: Senate Democrats Block Congressional Stock Trading Ban appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

Kathryn Kirk, the mother of the late TPUSA founder Charlie Kirk, has broken her silence regarding conspiracy theories surrounding her son’s tragic assassination.

Kathryn Kirk recently spoke to Vanity Fair for the first interview she has done since her son was assassinated on September 10, 2025.

In the interview, Kathryn shared that her silence about the tragedy was used by conspiracy theorists to claim there is animosity between her and Erika Kirk.

Kathryn shared, “We were 100 percent behind Erika, and through the tragedy, the two of them have grown closer together.

Per Vanity Fair:

The only time Kathryn Kirk, Charlie’s mother, cries is when she starts talking about how upset her son would be over the way his wife has been treated on social media. Kathryn, who has avoided speaking to journalists until now, says that she’s been fielding calls since minutes after Charlie was shot. A TMZ reporter “called me even before I talked to my daughter. Before I was running the car,” she says.

Though she says she’s desperate to remain a private citizen, Kathryn is also coming to terms with the fact that even her silence has been co-opted by conspiracy theorists who claim there is a rift between Charlie’s parents and Erika; that they blame her for their son’s death; that they’re fighting over Charlie’s will—and the legacy of Turning Point.

Kathryn insists that none of this is true. “We were 100 percent behind her,” Kathryn tells me, adding that “Erika and I have, through the trauma, grown closer.

“We knew Charlie in a way that no one else did. We can look at each other’s eyes and we know the depth of our despair.”

Later in the interview, Kathryn shared that, regarding a succession plan for TPUSA if anything were to happen to Charlie, he purposely spared both her and Charlie’s father from those talks “because it would just go right into our fears.”

Members of the TPUSA board told Vanity Fair that Charlie made it very clear that if anything was to happen to him, he wanted Erika to lead the organization he co-founded in 2012.

Kathryn has largely stayed out of the public eye following the assassination of her son.

However, she has sat alongside Erika in the courtroom during preliminary hearings for Tyler Robinson, the man charged with killing Charlie.

The post Charlie Kirk’s Mother Kathryn Kirk Addresses Conspiracy Theories Regarding Her Son’s Assassination for the First Time appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.