Trauma

Christa experienced severe, repeated rapes, and other forms of sexual violence, that began when she was a toddler.

Christa Pike was the victim of multiple rapes and severe, repeated physical and sexual abuse and violence that began when Christa was a toddler. She did not receive the medical and psychological care and attention she needed from her family or state actors.

Growing up, Christa suffered an “almost unbearably abusive background,” according to Dr. Jonathan Pincus, Professor of Neurology at Georgetown University. Christa was repeatedly beaten and abused by her father, maternal grandmother, and several of her mother’s boyfriends, including one boyfriend who was charged with assault for punching Christa in the face. Dr. Bethany Brand, a clinical psychologist with over three decades of specializing in the assessment and treatment of trauma-related disorders, described Christa’s history as “extraordinarily severe extreme trauma . . . she experienced more severe adverse events than 99% of the US population.”

By the time Christa was 18, she had been raped repeatedly, physically abused by at least seven different family members, and sexually abused by several individuals. When Christa was a toddler, her grandmother’s boyfriend began raping her, forcing his penis into her mouth over a period of years, up to kindergarten. After Christa began school, when asked what she did at home, Christa drew a man with a horrifying face and large genitalia. Although the school called Christa’s parents, there was no social services or law enforcement investigation. When Christa was 11, she was raped by a man who lived near her family. Christa’s mother initially did not believe Christa, but when she developed an infection from the rape and a teacher intervened, the man was prosecuted. He received a slap on the wrist as punishment and Christa was terrified with him continuing to live nearby.

At age 12, Christa attempted suicide following the death of her beloved paternal grandmother, the only person she felt was truly kind and nurturing toward her in childhood. Christa tried to overdose on Tylenol. She was then diagnosed with depression but never received proper medical or mental health treatment.

At age 13, Christa was physically and sexually assaulted by her mother’s boyfriend. He punched her in the face and twisted her nipples. Following the assault, authorities became involved and, although Christa’s mother bailed her boyfriend out of jail, he was not allowed in the home by court order. At age 17, Christa was raped again by a stranger. A man grabbed her and pulled Christa into the woods. He threw her down on the ground, but she was able eventually to escape, and a friend took her to the hospital. A rape kit was collected but the man was never identified or caught. The medical records describe Christa as tearful and very upset when describing the rape. Her friend was in the room with her and was helpful in calming Christa.

Upon entering the Job Corps program, Christa entered a toxic atmosphere of violence. According to an application to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, while the Job Corps is marketed as a “government-run residential program designed to help troubled teens gain job skills,” in actuality, “the administrators who ran Job Corps tolerated violence and neglected their young residents.” Students regularly carried razor blades or box cutters for protection. Lacking a sense of security and stability likely deepened Christa’s underlying trauma. She clung to her abusive boyfriend Tadaryl Shipp, although he would grab her by the throat and throw her against the wall. Shipp carried a razor blade under his tongue which he would brandish to threaten her.  

While Christa’s lifelong trauma history does not excuse her actions, they provide important context and mitigation for the offense—that was never told to the jurors who determined her sentence.