A FedEx driver who admitted to kidnapping and killing a seven-year-old girl in 2022 has been sentenced to death.
Tanner Horner, 34, pleaded guilty to capital murder back on April 7 right as the trial began.
After nearly three weeks of testimony, a Texas jury handed down the death sentence on Tuesday.
The decision will automatically be reviewed by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals.
Jurors had to choose between life in prison without parole or the death penalty; prosecutors pushed for execution and presented key evidence, including an audio recording from inside Horner’s FedEx van during the attack.
Investigators also spoke to the jury about Horner’s confession, the search efforts for the child, and how her body was eventually found.
According to case documents, Horner was delivering packages in Paradise in November 2022 when he kidnapped Athena Strand.
Prosecutors said he took her into his truck and later killed her.
During closing arguments, the district attorney described the case as one of the most severe types of crimes, the kind that qualifies for the harshest punishment under the law.
Prosecutors also suggested Horner had been thinking about committing something like this beforehand.
The defense took a different approach, asking the jury to spare his life. They brought up details about his background, including a difficult childhood, an autism diagnosis, exposure to high levels of lead, and ongoing mental health issues.
They argued that he wouldn’t pose a threat if kept in prison for life, but the jury ultimately didn’t agree.
When the sentence was read, emotions in the courtroom were intense.
Family members of Athena were visibly devastated.
Athena’s uncle spoke directly to Horner, saying the crime didn’t just take a life but completely shattered their family.
He described how Athena had been an innocent child who trusted the world, and that trust was met with violence; he said the pain caused by her death would be felt for generations.
He also challenged Horner’s claims about finding faith, saying his actions went against everything he now says he believes.
He went on to say that Horner would ultimately face judgment, and made it clear he believed Horner would be forgotten over time.
Horner will now be transferred to the Allan B. Polunsky Unit, a maximum security prison, in West Livingston, where death row inmates are held.
A date for his execution hasn’t been set yet.
