A former FedEx driver has been sentenced to death after pleading guilty to the murder of a seven-year-old girl whom he abducted from her Texas residence while delivering a Christmas present. The punishment was handed down by a jury in a Fort Worth courtroom on Tuesday, concluding a month-long hearing that featured testimony and evidence, including audio recordings capturing the final moments of Athena Strand's life inside the delivery van.
Guilty Plea and Sentencing
Tanner Horner, 34, entered a guilty plea to capital murder last month, just as his trial was set to commence, for the 2022 killing. Athena's body was discovered two days after she went missing from her home in the rural community of Paradise, near Fort Worth. When the judge read the sentence, Horner showed no visible reaction, according to a livestream of the proceedings.
The jury determined that there was a likelihood Horner would engage in criminal violence and pose an ongoing threat to society. They also concluded that neither the circumstances of the crime nor Horner's personal history warranted a sentence of life without parole instead of death.
Prosecution's Case
During opening statements, prosecutor James Stainton asserted that Horner had told "lie upon lie upon lie upon lie" in the case, including a false claim that he accidentally struck Athena with his van while making the delivery and then killed her in a panic. Several jurors wept as they were shown video and heard audio from inside the van after Athena was taken. The footage depicted Horner lifting her into the vehicle and driving away, instructing her not to scream or he would harm her. He then covered the camera, but the audio continued recording.
On the recording, Horner asked Athena questions about her age and school before stopping the van and telling her they were going to "hang out." He then instructed her to remove her shirt, prompting her to cry and ask what he was doing and whether he was a kidnapper. She pleaded for her mother and to go home, asking, "Why are you doing this?" Horner replied, "Because you are pretty." Athena responded, "My mom says I can't do that to somebody. And you can't do that to me either." As the hour-long recording continued, screams, choking, and slamming noises were heard. At one point, Horner threatened, "If you don't shut up, I will hurt you worse." A medical examiner testified that Athena died from blunt force injuries combined with smothering and strangulation.
Defense Arguments
While acknowledging that the evidence against Horner was "overwhelming" and "terrible," defense attorney Steven Goble argued that Horner's mother consumed alcohol during pregnancy, that he has autism, and that he suffered from "various mental illnesses throughout his life" and was exposed to a "massive amount of lead." Goble had urged the jury to sentence Horner to life imprisonment.
Athena's family revealed that the package Horner delivered was a Christmas gift for her—a box of "You Can Be Anything" Barbies. The trial was relocated from rural Wise County to Fort Worth after Horner's attorneys contended that he could not receive a fair trial in the original venue.
Associated Press writer Audrey McAvoy contributed to this report from Honolulu.
