Little Feather is from the Coastal Band of the Chumash Nation and was raised in Santa Barbara, California. He was charged with federal criminal charges arising from an October 27, 2016 arrest at Standing Rock as a water protector, and has been incarcerated without bond since March 9, 2017. If convicted of both charges, Little Feather was facing 15 years in prison. On February 8, 2018, he entered into a non-cooperating plea agreement and was sentenced in May to 36 months in prison.