[9] On February 1, 1966, Louise Hathcock attempted to kill Pusser during an on-site investigation of a robbery complaint at The Shamrock Motel.

Pusser blamed the loss to incumbent Sheriff Clifford Coleman in part on the controversy surrounding the making of the semibiographical movie Walking Tall.

Shortly after they passed the New Hope Methodist Church, a fast-moving car came alongside theirs and the occupants opened fire, killing Pauline and leaving Pusser for dead.

Nix was sentenced to the Louisiana State Penitentiary in Angola for the 1971 Easter Saturday murder of New Orleans grocer Frank J. Corso.

While imprisoned, Nix ordered the 1987 murder-for-hire of Judge Vincent Sherry and his wife Margaret, in Biloxi, Mississippi.

According to a 1990 AP story in The Town Talk, a newspaper in Alexandria, Louisiana, Nix denied being involved in the drive-by ambush on the Pussers.

In a TBI written statement: "With the support of Pauline’s family and in consultation with 25th Judicial District Attorney General Mark Davidson, TBI requested the exhumation in an attempt to answer critical questions and provide crucial information that may assist in identifying the person or persons responsible for Pauline Pusser’s death."

[19] Pusser died on August 21, 1974, of injuries sustained in a one-car automobile accident four miles west of Adamsville.

[20][9] Earlier that day, he had contracted with Bing Crosby Productions in Memphis to portray himself in the sequel to Walking Tall.

That evening, returning home alone from the McNairy County Fair in his specially modified Corvette, Pusser struck an embankment at high speed that ejected him from the vehicle.

[24] Southern rock band Drive-By Truckers told the story of Pusser's battle with organized crime in the songs "The Boys from Alabama", "Cottonseed", and "The Buford Stick" from their 2004 album The Dirty South.

The name of the main character, who was portrayed by Kevin Sorbo, was changed to Nick Prescott, and the movie was set in the Dallas area.

Jimmy Buffett refers to an altercation between Pusser and himself in the songs "Presents To Send You" and "Semi-True Stories" (from the albums A1A and Beach House on the Moon, respectively).

[26] There is also a line in the Buffett song "Close Calls" on the album "Equal Strain on All Parts" that references the altercation with Buford Pusser.