Tanner Horner was senteced to death on Tuesday.
minute read
Tanner Horner, the FedEx driver who kidnapped and murdered 7-year-old Athena Strand, was sentenced to death on Tuesday in Texas.
The murder of Strand took place in 2022 in Wise County. Nearly a month ago, Horner pleaded guilty to kidnapping and killing Strand before his capital murder trial.
As the case was presented by the prosecution at the sentencing, lawyers told the jury that he had fantasized about Strand's murder.
"Tanner Horner was driving a FedEx truck, and I believe he had fantasized about this. I believe this was something he had in mind," the prosecution said. "The experts told you that he fantasized about things. He fantasized about what he wanted to be. He fantasized about being a superhero. I think it's reasonable to believe that he planned this as well. This was something that was in his mind."
The prosecution later added in closing, "The level of pain, the level of abuse that [Horner] has inflicted upon this little girl and this family are unfathomable. The level of lies, the multiple different versions of whatever truth it is, that video. Everything you saw is important. Athena is important. Justice for her is important. And justice in this case has one result."
During the trial, the jury heard the audio recording Horner abducting and killing Strand. Horner had covered the cameras in the FedEx van before attacking the young child, but the audio was recorded at the time.
After Horner was sentenced, Elijah Strand, Athena's uncle, spoke directly to Horner after the death sentence was read by the judge. Texas law allows for victims as well as the relatives of victims to deliver a victim impact statement directly after a defendant has been sentenced.
'I'm Elijah Strand. I'm Jacob's brother, Athena's uncle. There are no words that truly capture the devastation that Tanner Horner caused us and in our family. What he took from this world was not just a child. He took a life, a future, and a piece of every single person who loved her. He took a granddaughter, a daughter, a niece, a cousin and a friend. She would call me Uncle 'Lijah because she, for the longest time, couldn't say the Elijah part of my name. It was the best thing to see her running up to me with her arms open, yelling, Uncle 'Lijah! And it's one of my last memories I have of her. And now I get to never hear that again," Strad's uncle said.
"Tanner Horner, I want you to hear this directly. You did not just take a life, you destroyed a family," he said, per NBC Dallas Fort Worth. "You took a little girl who trusted the world and repaid that innocence with violence. You chose to cause pain that will last generations. You say you found God, but what you did to Athena stands in direct opposition to everything that you now claim to believe."
"In Matthew 18:6, it says, If anyone causes one of these little ones to stumble, it would be better for them to have a millstone hung around their neck and to be drowned. That is how seriously harm against a child is judged. And you will be judged. You will face the wrath of God. I want you to know that you are nothing. You are a footnote in Athena's story," he added. "Her name will forever be remembered. Her name will forever be celebrated and everyone will forget you. You wanted your 15 minutes of fame. You got it. And no one's going to remember you after this."
Horner will be moved from the Tarrant County Jail to death row at the Allan B. Polunsky Unit in West Livingston, Texas. The defense had tried to get him life without parole and argued that because of his upbringing he would no longer be a threat in if her were confined to prison.
Horner will be killed by way of injection for his crimes. The time of his execution will be set at a later date.
The murder of Strand took place in 2022 in Wise County. Nearly a month ago, Horner pleaded guilty to kidnapping and killing Strand before his capital murder trial.
As the case was presented by the prosecution at the sentencing, lawyers told the jury that he had fantasized about Strand's murder.
"Tanner Horner was driving a FedEx truck, and I believe he had fantasized about this. I believe this was something he had in mind," the prosecution said. "The experts told you that he fantasized about things. He fantasized about what he wanted to be. He fantasized about being a superhero. I think it's reasonable to believe that he planned this as well. This was something that was in his mind."
The prosecution later added in closing, "The level of pain, the level of abuse that [Horner] has inflicted upon this little girl and this family are unfathomable. The level of lies, the multiple different versions of whatever truth it is, that video. Everything you saw is important. Athena is important. Justice for her is important. And justice in this case has one result."
During the trial, the jury heard the audio recording Horner abducting and killing Strand. Horner had covered the cameras in the FedEx van before attacking the young child, but the audio was recorded at the time.
After Horner was sentenced, Elijah Strand, Athena's uncle, spoke directly to Horner after the death sentence was read by the judge. Texas law allows for victims as well as the relatives of victims to deliver a victim impact statement directly after a defendant has been sentenced.
'I'm Elijah Strand. I'm Jacob's brother, Athena's uncle. There are no words that truly capture the devastation that Tanner Horner caused us and in our family. What he took from this world was not just a child. He took a life, a future, and a piece of every single person who loved her. He took a granddaughter, a daughter, a niece, a cousin and a friend. She would call me Uncle 'Lijah because she, for the longest time, couldn't say the Elijah part of my name. It was the best thing to see her running up to me with her arms open, yelling, Uncle 'Lijah! And it's one of my last memories I have of her. And now I get to never hear that again," Strad's uncle said.
"Tanner Horner, I want you to hear this directly. You did not just take a life, you destroyed a family," he said, per NBC Dallas Fort Worth. "You took a little girl who trusted the world and repaid that innocence with violence. You chose to cause pain that will last generations. You say you found God, but what you did to Athena stands in direct opposition to everything that you now claim to believe."
"In Matthew 18:6, it says, If anyone causes one of these little ones to stumble, it would be better for them to have a millstone hung around their neck and to be drowned. That is how seriously harm against a child is judged. And you will be judged. You will face the wrath of God. I want you to know that you are nothing. You are a footnote in Athena's story," he added. "Her name will forever be remembered. Her name will forever be celebrated and everyone will forget you. You wanted your 15 minutes of fame. You got it. And no one's going to remember you after this."
Horner will be moved from the Tarrant County Jail to death row at the Allan B. Polunsky Unit in West Livingston, Texas. The defense had tried to get him life without parole and argued that because of his upbringing he would no longer be a threat in if her were confined to prison.
Horner will be killed by way of injection for his crimes. The time of his execution will be set at a later date.
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