A judge denied Tanner Horner’s request for a new trial. Horner, a former FedEx driver who was sentenced to death for the murder of 7-year-old Athena Strand in 2022, is still appealing his original trial with the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, the state’s highest criminal court. Accordin g to the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure, “The judgment of conviction and sentence of death shall be subject to automatic review by the Court of Criminal Appeals.” The death penalty appeals process can involve two phases: a direct review and habeas corpus proceedings. The direct review is limited to the record from Horner’s first trial. His defense attorneys will argue that an error occurred during the initial proceedings and that his conviction should be overturned. During habeas corpus proceedings, new evidence and testimony can be introduced. The trial court will review the new evidence and make a recommendation to the Court of Criminal Appeals on whether to overturn the sentence. The denial of a new trial does not mean that Horner’s appeal has been denied. According to the Texas Rules of Appellate Procedure, a death penalty sentence in Texas triggers an automatic direct appeal, and filing a motion for a new trial merely extends the formal timeline to file the necessary paperwork for that appeal. If the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals affirms Horner’s sentence, he can appeal to the United States Supreme Court for review. Horner’s attorneys argued widespread media coverage surrounding the case intimidated key witnesses, who later refused to testify, and made it impossible for Horner to receive a fair trial; the judge disagreed. Horner pleaded guilty in the case; jurors determined if he would receive the death sentence or life in prison. During the trial, the jury heard a chilling audio recording of Strand’s abduction and murder taken from within Horner’s delivery van. Horner covered the camera before attacking the girl, but the microphone still recorded about an hour’s worth of audio. The jury also heard gruesome testimony from the investigators who interviewed Horner in the days after the girl’s disappearance and of their search and recovery of her body. Horner’s defense team told the jury about the defendant’s upbringing, highlighting his own abuse and mental health challenges, and argued his life should be spared because he would no longer be a threat in prison. After 19 days of testimony, both sides rested their cases on May 4, 2026. The jury reached its final decision about Horner’s fate after about two-and-a-half hours of deliberation. ...read more read less