Former FedEx driver sentenced to death for killing 7-year-old girl after delivery at her Texas home
6abc Philadelphia • • nation
Key Points:
- Tanner Horner, a former FedEx driver, was sentenced to death for the 2022 abduction and murder of 7-year-old Athena Strand in Texas after pleading guilty to capital murder.
- Jurors decided on the death penalty, citing Horner's likelihood to commit future violence and finding no mitigating factors to warrant life imprisonment instead.
- Evidence presented included disturbing audio recordings from inside Horner's delivery van capturing Athena's final moments, including her pleas and his threats.
- The medical examiner confirmed Athena died from blunt force injuries, smothering, and strangulation, while Horner's defense highlighted his autism, mental illness, and prenatal exposure to alcohol and lead.
- The trial was relocated to Fort Worth to ensure a fair trial, and Athena's family revealed the package Horner delivered was a Christmas gift for her.
