TX - Athena Strand, 8, Abducted & Murdered By FedEx Contract Driver, Tanner Horner, Paradise, 2022 #2

[Niner]

It worked this time! Looks like pretrial on 3/4.

View attachment 565714

Courts

www.tarrantcountytx.gov

Okay!! Thanks!

 

[Niner]

Tuesday, March 4th:
*Pretrial Conference Hearing (Both Cases) – (@ 12pm CT) - TX - Athena Presley Monroe Strand (7) – (last seen near the 200 block of County 3573 on Nov. 30, 2022 in Paradise. Reported missing by mom @ 6:40pm on 11/30/22; found deceased along the water’s edge of the Trinity River southeast of Boyd on the evening of Dec. 2, 2022 about 9 miles from her home). *Tanner Lynn Horner (31/now 33) arrested (12/3/22), indicted (2/17/23), charged & arraigned (3/6/23) with capital murder (under the age of 10) & 1st degree felon aggravated kidnapping. Bond $1M (murder) $500K (kidnapping). Surety Bond total $1,545,000. Plead not guilty (3/6/23). DA will seek DP (2/18/23). Wise County/Tarrant County
TX - *Tanner Lynn Horner (31/now 33) charged (12/21/22) with 3 counts of sexual assault (from 2013) in Fort Worth. Bond @ $45K. Surety Bond Total $135K. Tarrant County
Admitted kidnapping & killing Athena.
Jury Selection was set to begin on 2/3/25 was cancelled with new Judge in place.
Trial was set to begin on 3/17/25 was cancelled with new Judge.
Trial was moved from Wise County to Tarrant County [3/16/24].
Judge George Gallagher presiding. DA James Stanton. Defense: Public defenders Bill Ray & Steven Gordon. For Aggravated kidnapping attorney Pamela Fernandez.
Case & court info from 11/30/22 thru 12/21/22 [Tarrant County] & thru 1/21/25 [murder] reference post #429 here:
https://www.websleuths.com/forums/t...actor-tanner-horner-paradise-2.649712/page-22
2/3/25 Monday, Jury selection: A new judge in Tarrant County will oversee the capital murder trial of Tanner Horner. Judge George Gallagher has been appointed to preside over the case moving forward. No trial date has been set. The move came following the retirement of 297th District Judge David Hagerman on Friday, 1/31/25, the source confirmed. Hagerman’s court had been assigned the case last fall after Horner’s attorneys with the Regional Public Defenders Office (RPDO) successfully argued for a change of venue out of Wise County due to “inflammatory pretrial publicity” that would prevent a fair trial. 271st District Judge Brock Smith granted the motion, agreeing to move the trial from Decatur to Tarrant County. Next pretrial hearing on 3/4/25 @ 12pm.

 

[PommyMommy]

MAR 4, 2025

Trial date pushed back for man accused of kidnapping, murdering 7-year-old Athena Strand

A Tarrant County judge set Tanner Horner's trial date for April 7, 2026.

www.wfaa.com

Horner’s new defense attorneys—who took over in the summer of 2023—argued they needed more time.

They requested that the trial be pushed to October 2026, but Judge George Gallagher denied the request on Tuesday, saying they have enough time to prepare. Instead, he set the trial date for April 7, 2026.

In court, the judge also approved a request from prosecutors to transfer DNA evidence from a lab in Houston—where there’s a backlog—to Tarrant County to speed up testing.

 

[Niner]

MAR 4, 2025

Trial date pushed back for man accused of kidnapping, murdering 7-year-old Athena Strand

A Tarrant County judge set Tanner Horner's trial date for April 7, 2026.

www.wfaa.com

Horner’s new defense attorneys—who took over in the summer of 2023—argued they needed more time.

They requested that the trial be pushed to October 2026, but Judge George Gallagher denied the request on Tuesday, saying they have enough time to prepare. Instead, he set the trial date for April 7, 2026.

In court, the judge also approved a request from prosecutors to transfer DNA evidence from a lab in Houston—where there’s a backlog—to Tarrant County to speed up testing.

Can not access article - so no next hearing date in there? TIA!

 

[PommyMommy]

Can not access article - so no next hearing date in there? TIA!

No, just the trial date. There might be something in this article but I can't seem to get past the paywall. Maybe someone else can manage it. ? MOO

https://www.star-telegram.com/news/local/crime/article301410634.html

 

[swanniee11]

From above article it basically went over the crime. I grabbed that last of it before I hit paywall.

In court, the judge also approved a request from prosecutors to transfer DNA evidence from a lab in Houston—where there’s a backlog—to Tarrant County to speed up testing.
Wise County District Attorney James Stainton, who will personally prosecute this case, made the request.
The defense objected, arguing that a death penalty case should not be rushed because justice cannot be rushed. The judge ultimately ruled in favor of prosecutors, allowing the evidence transfer to move forward

Not sure if this was already known or not.

 

[Niner]

More details on when jury selection starts. But no - next hearing date...

Capital murder trial for delivery driver accused of killing Athena Strand pushed to 2026

The capital murder trial for the man accused of killing 7-year-old Athena Strand is being pushed into next year.

www.nbcdfw.com

March 6, 2025

The capital murder trial for the man accused of killing 7-year-old Athena Strand is being pushed into next year.

Tanner Horner is facing a capital murder charge in the girl's death. Pre-trial hearings were expected to begin in January, jury selection in February, and the trial in March. Now, jury selection is scheduled for Jan. 29, 2026. Final jury selection will be on April 1, 2026, with the trial expected to start on April 7, 2026.

 

[Niner]

@PommyMommy - any hearings updated yet? TIA!

 

[PommyMommy]

@PommyMommy - any hearings updated yet? TIA!

The only date they're showing is the 4/1/26 trial date.

Courts

www.tarrantcountytx.gov

 

[Niner]

The only date they're showing is the 4/1/26 trial date.

View attachment 572323

Courts

www.tarrantcountytx.gov

Thanks for checking - I'll be back in about a month - maybe he'll have a hearing by then in 2025.

 

[Niner]

@PommyMommy -as promised - I'm back! Any thing "new" happening - any hearing dates yet?
TIA! No hurry!

And Happy Easter (to all)!

 

[PommyMommy]

@PommyMommy -as promised - I'm back! Any thing "new" happening - any hearing dates yet?
TIA! No hurry!

And Happy Easter (to all)!

Happy Easter!

Still nothing new.

 

[Niner]

Happy Easter!

Still nothing new.

Okay - thanks for taking the time to check! Have a good day!

 

[Niner]

@PommyMommy - when you have time - can you check & see if there might be a next court hearing date yet? TIA!

 

[PommyMommy]

@PommyMommy - when you have time - can you check & see if there might be a next court hearing date yet? TIA! View attachment 583199

Not yet. Still showing trial on 4/1/26.

 

[Niner]

Not yet. Still showing trial on 4/1/26.

That was quick! Thanks! See you next month! LOL!

 

[Niner]

@PommyMommy - just going thru some "oldies" - any updates yet for this case? TIA!

 

[PommyMommy]

@PommyMommy - just going thru some "oldies" - any updates yet for this case? TIA!

No updates yet.

 

[Niner]

@PommyMommy - another month has gone by - any updates yet? Or just trial date? TIA!

 

[PommyMommy]

@PommyMommy - another month has gone by - any updates yet? Or just trial date? TIA! View attachment 592937

Nothing new, @Niner. We're still looking at 4/1/26.