Tanner Horner pleads guilty to killing Texas 7-year-old
After Tanner Horner pleaded guilty to killing Athena Strand Tuesday morning, jurors heard testimony and photo viewed evidence as they now will decide whether Horner will receive the death penalty. (KDFW-TV)
A former FedEx driver who admitted to killing 7-year-old Athena Strand has been sentenced to death by a Texas jury.
Tanner Horner, 34, a former delivery driver accused of kidnapping and strangling the 7-year-old after hitting her with his delivery van in 2022, was sentenced Tuesday to death by a Tarrant County jury.
The decision came after 19 days of testimony and about two and a half hours of jury deliberations, with both sides resting their cases on Monday and delivering closing remarks on Tuesday morning.
"Punishment for the offense of capital murder is confined by imprisonment in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice for life or by death," said Judge George Gallagher. "Each of you must decide the case for yourself, but only after an impartial consideration of the evidence with your fellow jurors."
Horner sat stone-faced as the judge delivered his death sentence, and simply said "yes" when asked about the appointment of counsel for his appeal.
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Tanner Horner listens during the first day of his capital murder trial at the Tim Curry Criminal Justice Center in Fort Worth, Texas, on April 7, 2026. Horner has been sentenced in the kidnapping and killing 7-year-old Athena Strand in 2022. (Juan Figueroa/The Dallas Morning News; Wise County Sheriff's Office)
On Tuesday, jurors heard closing arguments as Wise County District Attorney James Stainton told the jurors that criminals like Horner are the reason Texas still has the death penalty.
During the defense team's closing arguments, attorney Susan Anderson encouraged jurors to be merciful as they decided Horner's fate.
"You hold a man’s life in your hands and your decision will define who you are," she said. "Are you going to be merciful? Or are you going to be vengeful? I want you to vote for life. Sentence Tanner to life in prison without the possibility of parole."
"Was Tanner merciful? Was Tanner vengeful? Did he show remorse?" Stainton asked. "No, and I think that’s important."
Former FedEx delivery driver Tanner Horner allegedly struck Athena Strand with his vehicle on Nov. 30, strangled her, and then hid her body 10 miles from her father's home. (Varghese and Summersett Law Group)
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Jacob Strand, Athena's uncle, spoke directly to Horner after the verdict was read.
"You did not just take a life, you destroyed a family," he said, according to Fox News affiliate, KDFW-TV. "You will be judged. You will face the wrath of God. And I want you to know that you are nothing. You are a footnote in Athena's story. Her name will forever be celebrated and everyone will forget you."
The rest of her family told reporters that they were not yet ready to comment on the outcome of the trial.
A newly released photo shows seven-year-old Athena Strand shortly before prosecutors say she was abducted and killed by a FedEx driver delivering her Christmas present. (POOL via KDFW-TV)
Throughout the trial, which was moved from Wise County to Tarrant County due to extensive local media coverage, the jury listened to extensive evidence including audio from the FedEx truck of the murder, pictures of her clothing, and testimony from DNA and crime scene experts.
One haunting photo shown to jurors, captures the young girl moments before prosecutors say she was driven to her death by the FedEx driver who abducted and killed her while delivering her Christmas present.
The image, released by prosecutors, shows the young girl standing behind Horner on the day she was strangled in Texas in November 2022.
In the black-and-white photo, Athena appears visibly uneasy as Horner focuses on the road ahead.
Tanner Horner listens during the first day of his capital murder trial at the Tim Curry Criminal Justice Center, April 7, in Fort Worth, Texas. He is charged with kidnapping and killing 7-year-old Athena Strand in 2022. (Juan Figueroa/The Dallas Morning News)
In 2023, Horner admitted to abducting Strand while delivering a package to her father’s home in Paradise, a town of fewer than 500 people about 60 miles northwest of Dallas.
Her body was found on Dec. 2, 2022, two days after she was reported missing less than 10 miles away from the property.
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Horner, authorities said, was delivering a package of Barbie dolls intended to be Strand’s Christmas present.
Athena was set to return to Oklahoma with her mother after the holidays and had been staying with her father, Jacob Strand, and stepmother, Ashley Strand, in Wise County.
According to the arrest warrant, Horner told investigators that he strangled the 7-year-old after accidentally hitting her with his van while making a delivery at her father’s home. He said Strand wasn't seriously hurt after he hit her while backing up, but he panicked and put her in his van.
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