Ex-delivery driver faces possible death sentence after admitting murder of girl, 7 - BERITAJA

A erstwhile FedEx transportation driver is facing a imaginable decease condemnation aft admitting the execution of a seven-year-old girl.

Tanner Horner pleaded blameworthy to superior execution connected the opening time of his proceedings successful Texas for the sidesplitting of Athena Strand connected Tuesday.

Horner, who abducted the woman while delivering a Christmas gift to her location successful the municipality of Paradise, adjacent Fort Worth successful 2022, faces either the decease punishment aliases life successful prison.

Her assemblage was recovered respective miles from her location 2 days aft she was reported missing, pursuing a hunt involving 200 people.

Horner told investigators that he strangled Athena aft accidentally hitting her pinch his van while making a delivery.

Athena wasn't earnestly wounded aft he deed her while reversing, but he panicked and put her successful his van, he said.

Horner said he didn't want her to show her begetter what happened, truthful he first tried to break the girl's cervix and erstwhile that didn't work, he strangled her pinch his hands successful the backmost of the van, an apprehension warrant said.

He later took investigators to wherever he'd near Athena's body, according to the warrant.

Wise County District Attorney James Stainton dismissed Horner's type of events successful his opening statement, saying the "only truthful point that Tanner Horner told rule enforcement was that he killed her".

Mr Stainton told jurors it would beryllium difficult for them to support up pinch the defendant's claims, arsenic "it is dishonesty upon dishonesty upon dishonesty upon lie".

The charismatic told the tribunal the thought that Horner deed her pinch his conveyance and panicked was "an absolute lie", arsenic the small woman was unhurt erstwhile Horner put her into the vehicle.

"The first point Tanner Horner says to Athena erstwhile he picks her up and puts her successful that truck... he leans down and he says, 'don't scream, aliases I'll wounded you'."

"He says that twice," Stainton said.

Jurors were shown a image of Athena taken from a video wrong the transportation truck. She was still live and sitting connected her knees down the driver's seat.

Mr Stainton said Athena fought Horner, and his DNA was recovered nether her fingernails. He besides said Horner's DNA was recovered "in places wherever you shouldn't find DNA connected a seven-year-old girl".

Ashley Strand, Athena's stepmother, told jurors that the package Horner had dropped disconnected was a Christmas coming for Athena - a container of "You Can Be Anything" Barbies.

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Defence lawyer Steven Goble admitted the grounds against Horner was "overwhelming" and "terrible", but told jurors that Horner's mother drank while she was pregnant, that he has autism and suffered from "various intelligence illnesses passim his life" successful summation to being exposed to a "massive magnitude of lead".

Jurors will determine whether he will beryllium put to decease aliases jailed for life without parole.