A former FedEx driver has been sentenced to death after pleading guilty to the 2022 kidnapping and murder of a 7-year-old girl in Texas, a case that deeply shocked the local community and drew widespread attention during the trial.
Tanner Horner, 34, was convicted in connection with the killing of Athena Strand who disappeared from her home in the rural town of Paradise, near Fort Worth, while a delivery was being made around the Christmas period. Her body was later recovered two days after she was reported missing.
The sentencing phase in Fort Worth followed nearly a month of testimony and evidentiary proceedings, during which jurors reviewed extensive material presented by prosecutors and defense attorneys.
This included audio and video evidence recovered from inside Horner’s delivery van which prosecutors said played a significant role in reconstructing the events leading up to the child’s death.
Horner had entered a guilty plea to capital murder shortly before the trial formally commenced, effectively admitting responsibility for the offense. Despite this, the court proceeded with the sentencing phase to determine whether he would receive the death penalty or life imprisonment without parole.
During the proceedings, prosecutors argued that Horner had provided multiple inconsistent and false statements to investigators, attempting to misrepresent the circumstances of the crime. They maintained that the evidence demonstrated deliberate actions and argued that he posed a continuing threat to public safety.
Jurors were presented with recorded material from inside the vehicle, which prosecutors described as central to understanding the timeline of events. Several jurors were visibly emotional during the presentation of this evidence, according to courtroom accounts.
A medical examiner testified that Athena Strand’s cause of death was consistent with blunt force trauma, combined with smothering and strangulation.
In contrast, the defense acknowledged the seriousness and overwhelming nature of the evidence but urged the jury to consider mitigating factors in sentencing.
Horner’s attorney argued that he had a history of neurological and mental health conditions, including autism, and suggested that environmental factors, including alleged exposure to lead during childhood, may have impacted his development.
The defense requested that the court impose a sentence of life imprisonment without parole instead of the death penalty.
The jury ultimately determined that Horner represented a continuing danger to society and concluded that there were no sufficient mitigating circumstances to justify a lesser sentence.
The case was originally set to be heard in Wise County but was later relocated to Fort Worth after defense attorneys raised concerns regarding the ability to secure a fair trial in the initial venue.
According to statements from the victim’s family, the package delivered by Horner to their home contained a Christmas gift intended for Athena.
