A 37-year-old woman in Pennsylvania faces a possible life sentence after admitting to shooting and killing a 66-year-old man, then “cutting him up” with a chainsaw she bought with his money and burning his remains in his backyard fire pit. Marisa Jean Rodriguez pleaded “guilty — mentally ill” last week to a slew of felonies, including third-degree murder and corpse abuse in Michael Maisner’s 2023 death.
Rodriguez was initially charged with first-degree murder, but the charge was reduced after she reached an agreement with prosecutors at the Erie County District Attorney’s Office, according to court records examined by Law&Crime. She also pleaded guilty to criminal mischief, possession of a criminal instrument, possession of a firearm by a prohibited person, theft, evidence tampering, and unauthorized use of a motor vehicle.
In January 2024, a judge determined that Rodriguez lacked the mental capacity to stand trial. However, the judge overturned that decision in September 2024, finding Rodriguez fit to contribute to her own defense.
As previously reported by Law&Crime, the violence occurred on April 12, 2023, when Maisner’s family members, concerned that they hadn’t heard from him in about two weeks, went to his home in the 7000 block of Crestview Drive in Summit Township. There was no sign of Maisner, but the family discovered Rodriguez in the attic, where she had reportedly lived for several months before the murder.
The next day, authorities visited Maisner’s home to conduct a welfare check.
According to the criminal complaint, investigators discovered a missing section of carpet and padding, possible human tissue, blood splatter, cleaning supplies, and bleach-stained clothing in Maisner’s home. Police also reportedly discovered strange writings on the walls of the home.
Investigators discovered an eyeglass frame piece, a picture frame, carpet foam, carpet, charred human remains, and burned bone fragments in a fire pit, which were later identified as Maisner’s using DNA, according to Erie News Now.
Rodriguez killed Maisner and drove the victim’s Cadillac STX about 40 miles to his home in New York, where police arrested her the next day on car theft charges. She was extradited to Pennsylvania on murder charges. During questioning, she reportedly admitted to living in Maisner’s attic for up to three months and making comments about him being dead, despite her claim that she had no idea how he died.
The victim’s nephew, Adam Maisner, told Erie News Now that he let Rodriguez stay with him to help around the house.
“He was just a laid-back guy,” Adam Maisner explained. “He was waiting to have his hips replaced, and all he could think about was golf and riding his motorcycle afterwards. That is all he wanted to do.
According to WJET/WFXP, authorities linked the suspect to the killing through her online searches for “Mike Maisner,” “how to shoot someone,” “how long does it take to burn a dead body,” “burn a body,” “if you shoot someone in the head they die instantly,” and “cutting a dead body with a chain saw.”
According to the station, authorities discovered video of the suspect receiving the PIN for Maisner’s debit card, a photo of a.357 revolver, and photos and videos of a dead Maisner in a pool of blood with a gunshot wound to the back of the head and torso in her online account.
According to the complaint, the videos show the suspect wearing black and brown shoes found in Maisner’s car in New York. She allegedly spent nearly $600 of his money at Walmart on April 3, 2023, including the purchase of a chainsaw, according to Erie News Now.
She reportedly interrupted testimony during a preliminary hearing in August 2023, saying, “Well, I’m guilty” and later, “Then I cut him up,” according to the Erie Times-News.
Rodriguez was initially declared incompetent to stand trial in January. According to court documents, a psychiatrist who diagnosed Rodriguez with schizophrenia during an examination in jail stated that Rodriguez had made comments about the Bible and “how cats were her best friends.”
According to the newspaper, she wrote rambling handwritten letters to her lawyer in pencil while in custody at Erie County Prison.
“I don’t know why I acted the way I did with the body,” she admits in one letter. “TRAMITIZED. “I still am.”
Rodriguez is scheduled to appear at her sentencing hearing on October 13.
