A courtroom in Texas County has been shaken by emotional testimony and disturbing video evidence as jurors deliberate whether Tanner Horner should face the death penalty or spend the rest of his life in prison for the murder of 7-year-old Athena Strand in 2022.
In the long-running case, The Dallas Express has extensively covered, Horner – a former FedEx driver – pleaded guilty on the opening day of trial, April 7, to capital murder and aggravated kidnapping, bypassing a guilt phase entirely and sending the case straight to sentencing.
Wise County District Attorney James Stainton is seeking the death penalty.
High-profile names, including Elon Musk, are calling for Horner’s execution. “Execute him immediately,” Musk posted on X.
Execute him immediately
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 17, 2026
Prosecutors played audio recordings they say captured young Athena’s final moments inside Horner’s delivery van. Athena’s parents were not present in the room when the audio aired. Jurors could be seen sobbing, and several family members left the courtroom as the footage played.
Video evidence shown to the jury earlier in the trial documented Horner manipulating the van’s dash camera with a sticky note, covering and uncovering it – something prosecutors say he also did on November 30, 2022, the day he went to the Strand family’s home to deliver a Christmas package. A second camera inside the delivery truck, however, continued recording. That footage reportedly captured Horner loading Athena into the back of his truck before driving away. As the van moved down the road, the 7-year-old could be heard repeatedly asking, “Where are we going?”
Prosecutors said Horner asked the child her age, what school she attended, and told her she was “really pretty.” The audio then captured Athena crying and saying “no” before going silent. Further video footage also showed Horner smoking a cigarette afterward and stopping at a gas station to clean the back of his truck.
A medical examiner later determined the child died from blunt-force trauma and strangulation.
Jacob Strand, Athena’s father, took the stand and described the last time he saw his daughter alive – she chased his truck down the driveway to give him one more hug before he left for a camping trip. He told jurors he later turned to alcohol, his marriage collapsed, and he lost 50 pounds after her death. He said he still lives on the same property and visits a pear tree Athena used to climb with her sister.
“She loved everybody,” he said before exiting the stand. “I just hope the jury and the justice system makes the right decision.”
Athena’s mother, Maitlyn Gandy, also testified, describing how she frantically searched her daughter’s body the first time she saw her after she was found. “Her ears were messed up,” Gandy told the jury. “I searched her body, looking for any reason that that wasn’t my baby.” She told jurors that Athena was not just a news story. “She was loved, and she is loved. She had a life, and she wanted to live.”
As DX has previously reported, earlier days of the sentencing phase also revealed that Horner wrote letters from jail prior to a May 2023 suicide attempt, including one addressed to Athena’s family in which he called her a “little angel” and expressed regret for the heinous crime.
The defense has asked jurors to spare Horner’s life, citing his autism diagnosis, a history of mental illness, childhood exposure to high lead levels, and a difficult upbringing. The prosecution has pushed back on that argument, pointing to evidence that Horner deliberately ensured he had the same delivery truck each day and systematically concealed his actions.
Athena would have turned 11 next month.
The sentencing trial is ongoing but paused. After the intense graphic evidence on April 16, jurors were given Friday off, per Fox 4 KDFW. Court proceedings without the jury continued, and the trial is scheduled to resume on Wednesday morning, April 22. The defense will present its case, followed by possible rebuttal and closing arguments. A jury decision on the death penalty or life without parole is expected in the coming days or weeks, but no verdict has been reached yet.
