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What’s next for Tanner Horner? Athena Strand's killer's death penalty triggers automatic appeals process; what it means
Tanner Horner's death sentence triggered an automatic appeals process, which could take years, an expert has explained.
A former FedEx driver was sentenced to death on Tuesday, May 5, after pleading guilty to killing seven-year-old Athena Strand, who he took from her Texas home while delivering a Christmas gift. Jurors in a Fort Worth courtroom decided on Tanner Horner's punishment after hearing days of testimony and evidence, which included audio of Strand's last moments from inside his delivery van.
Horner, 34, pleaded guilty to capital murder last month. He killed Strand in 2022, and her body was found two days after she was reported missing from her home in the rural town of Paradise, near Fort Worth. She died from blunt-force trauma and strangulation.
The death sentence has ended the trial, but the process is far from over. The death sentence triggers an automatic appeals process, which could take years, Christy Jack, a partner at Varghese Summersett who has handled multiple death penalty cases, said, according to CBS News.
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Texas law requires an automatic appeal in all death penalty cases. This means Horner’s sentence will be reviewed by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals before an execution can move forward. Previously, his attorneys asked for the death penalty to be removed because he has autism and "various mental illnesses."
What’s next for Tanner Horner?
Horner will now be transferred to a Texas Department of Criminal Justice facility in Livingston. A judge will be setting an execution date, though appeals of the death sentence will be automatic.
"It's been three and a half years since she was abducted and killed," Jack said. "And it's going to be at least twice that long, probably, if I had to estimate, before he's executed. And so, by then, you're talking about almost a decade of their life that will have been spent trying to overcome the grief, trying to overcome the loss."
Read More | ‘You are a footnote in her story’: Slain Athena Strand's uncle rips Tanner Horner in court | Watch
Jack explained that death penalty appeals in Texas can include several stages, including review by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, post‑conviction claims, and possible federal appeals.
The trial has ended, but the case’s impact does not end with a verdict, Jack said.
"True justice would be bringing her back, but that's impossible," Jack said. "I'm sure that's what her mother thinks about… I'd give all of this up just to have her back."
