Tanner Horner is asking for a retrial, claiming media coverage caused an unfair trial

Tanner Horner, the former FedEx driver who was sentenced to death earlier this year for the murder of 7-year-old Athena Strand, has asked for a new trial, alleging widespread media coverage prevented key witnesses from taking the stand.  

Horner, 34, and his defense team filed for a motion for a retrial June 4. In arguing that extensive media coverage caused Horner to have an unfair trial, his defense team noted that five defense witnesses backed out of testifying.

Senior District Judge George Gallagher, a former Tarrant County judge who presided over the murder trial, signed a protective order June 25 that forbade anyone involved in the trial from speaking about the retrial motion to ensure the defendant has a fair retrial if one is granted.

A Tarrant County jury found Horner guilty of capital murder on May 5 for kidnapping Athena from her Wise County home before strangling her and dumping her body in a river in November 2022. 

The trial was broadcast in its entirety by many local news outlets, gaining a strong social media presence that led to threats to witnesses, one of the defense’s main points for a retrial. 

Investigators identified Horner, a former FedEx driver, as a suspect after learning he delivered a package to the home around the time Athena disappeared. He confessed to killing her, saying he did it because he accidentally hit her with his truck and feared he would get in trouble. 

The trial was moved to Tarrant County after Horner’s lawyers argued he couldn’t get a fair trial in Wise County. 

Wise County District Attorney James Stainton said to The Dallas Morning News that the motion for a retrial is standard appellate procedure.

“This is a procedure that happens not only in this case but in almost all cases, period,” Stainton said.