ASHEVILLE, N.C. – Ernest D. Pheasant Sr., 47, a member of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians (EBCI), was sentenced to life in prison on Thursday, April 3, 2025 for the 2013 murder of Marie Walkingstick Pheasant, announced Russ Ferguson, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina.
“For over a decade, Marie’s family has endured the pain of losing their loved one without justice. Today, that changed,” said U.S. Attorney Ferguson. “Ernest Pheasant will pay for his heinous crime by spending the rest of his life behind bars. While nothing can undo the family’s loss, I hope this sentence brings them a measure of justice. My Office remains committed to pursuing cases involving missing or murdered indigenous persons no matter how much time has passed.”
“While nothing can undo the pain caused by this tragic crime, we hope that this sentence helps to provide closure to the family and friends of Marie Walkingstick Pheasant,” said Marcelino Toersbijns, Chief of the Bureau of Indian Affairs Missing and Murdered Unit (MMU). “This case is emblematic of the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Persons Crisis impacting tribal communities across the country and highlights the importance of the MMU’s mission of analyzing and solving missing, murdered and human trafficking cases involving American Indians and Alaska Natives.”
According to filed documents and information presented in court, on Dec. 29, 2013, the body of Marie Walkingstick Pheasant was discovered inside a burned-out vehicle parked near Big Cove Road within the Qualla Boundary in the Western District of North Carolina.
Investigators determined that the vehicle had been intentionally set on fire. An autopsy revealed that Marie died from stab wounds to the neck and abdomen. DNA retrieved from a baseball cap found near the vehicle was linked to the defendant, who was Marie’s estranged husband.
On April 7, 2022, following a review of unsolved homicides in the region, the Bureau of Indian Affairs’ Missing and Murdered Unit opened a full interagency investigation into the case. During the investigation, law enforcement determined that Pheasant killed Marie at their home, then transferred her body to the car, drove it to Big Cove Road, and set it on fire. On Aug. 16, 2024, Pheasant pleaded guilty to first degree murder for killing Marie willfully, deliberately, maliciously, and with premeditation. The MMU began as the Cold Case task force, part of Operation Lady Justice, a multi-agency effort established by President Trump’s administration in 2019 to enhance the operation of the criminal justice system and address the staggering number of missing and murdered American Indian and Alaska Natives in tribal communities.
Thursday’s sentence is the result of the joint investigation conducted by the MMU, the FBI in North Carolina, the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation, the North Carolina State Highway Patrol, the Cherokee Indian Police Department, and the EBCI Office of the Tribal Prosecutor. Assistant U.S. Attorney Alex M. Scott of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Asheville prosecuted the case.
- U.S. Department of Justice release
