Man pleads guilty to 2013 cold case murder in North Carolina

ASHEVILLE, N.C. (WSPA) – 47-year-old Ernest D. Pheasant, Sr., an enrolled member of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, pleaded guilty on Friday to first-degree murder in Indian Country.

On December 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, according to court filings and the plea hearing.

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.

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.

Pheasant admitted to murdering Marie willfully, deliberately, maliciously, and with
premeditation, according to Friday’s guilty plea.

Pheasant remains in federal custody. At sentencing, Pheasant faces a statutorily required
sentence of life in prison. A sentencing date has not been set.

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