Texas | Tanner Horner trial enters final week as jurors weigh death penalty

Horner, 35, pleaded guilty to capital murder and aggravated kidnapping

The sentencing trial of former FedEx driver Tanner Horner enters its final week Monday in a Tarrant County courtroom in Fort Worth as jurors prepare to decide whether he will receive the death penalty or life in prison without parole for the 2022 kidnapping and murder of 7-year-old Athena Strand.

Horner, 35, pleaded guilty to capital murder and aggravated kidnapping on April 7, 2026, just as jury selection wrapped and testimony was set to begin.

The plea allowed the case to skip the guilt phase and move straight to punishment. The trial was moved from Wise County to Tarrant County to ensure an impartial jury.

Athena Strand disappeared Nov. 30, 2022, from her home in the small Wise County community of Paradise while Horner made a FedEx delivery there. He later confessed and led investigators to her body in a rural area.

Prosecutors presented graphic evidence during the punishment phase, including audio captured inside Horner’s delivery van of the girl’s final moments. They argued his actions showed planning and an attempt to conceal the crime.

Defense attorneys have called family members, former coworkers and mental health experts.

Testimony focused on Horner’s autism spectrum disorder diagnosis, developmental challenges, troubled childhood and family history of trauma, arguing these factors reduce his moral blameworthiness and that he does not pose a future danger if sentenced to life. His grandmother testified last week, offering an apology to Athena’s family.

The case has drawn intense attention across North Texas, highlighting safety concerns for families and delivery workers.

Defense testimony is expected to wrap this week, with closing arguments possibly Tuesday and jury deliberations to follow.

Source: audacy.com, Joey Kelley, May 4, 2026

"One is absolutely sickened, not by the crimes that the wicked have committed,
but by the punishments that the good have inflicted."

— Oscar Wilde

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