Final Words: On day 16 of the trial, the FedEx driver addressed someone unexpected instead of the victim’s family — with only one sentence

LIVE: Tanner Horner’s defense team to wrap up its case by CBS TEXAS on YouTube

Tanner Horner’s defense attorneys rested their case on Monday morning in his sentencing for the murder and kidnapping of Athena Strand.

On its tenth day of calling witnesses, the defense team closed with Jolie Brams, a forensic psychologist who was asked to evaluate Horner’s developmental history.

Brams testified that her evaluation was based on meeting with Horner over about 12 hours across multiple sessions in jail, interviews with his family, and reviewing numerous records about him. She described Horner’s upbringing as neglectful, which impacted his development, and said he shows signs of developmental immaturity and struggles with adult functioning.

Brams said Horner’s autism and other impairments did not cause him to commit the crime and are not excuses or justifications, but “set the stage” for his life.

Horner’s defense is attempting to convince the jury to sentence Horner to life in prison, while prosecutors are seeking the death penalty.

The prosecution is calling three rebuttal witnesses, who are expected to challenge points the defense witnesses made that could influence jurors to sentence Horner to life in prison.

All testimony is expected to finish on Monday afternoon, and closing arguments are scheduled for Tuesday.

Killer FedEx driver Tanner Horner claimed he had made a “deal with the devil” by slaying 7-year-old Athena Strand, the jury at his murder trial was told.

The confessed child murderer compared his crimes to the 2017 movie “American Satan,” in which a rock band commits human sacrifices as part of a pact with a demonic entity to achieve fame and success, forensic psychiatrist Dr. Eileen Ryan told the jury in a Fort Worth, Texas, courtroom on Wednesday.

“He [Horner] spoke quite specifically about the movie ‘American Satan.’ He described a belief that he had entered into a ‘deal with the devil’ — not necessarily in a supernatural sense, but as a catastrophic moral trade,” Ryan said.

“In his mind, he believed that by taking Athena’s life, he was ‘saving’ his own life and career,” she added.

Killer FedEx driver Tanner Horner claimed he had made a “deal with the devil” by slaying 7-year-old Athena Strand.FOX 4 DFW

“He felt that if he didn’t do this, his world would end, his job would be gone, and he would be ruined,” Ryan said.

The psychiatrist noted that, while Horner has diagnoses of Asperger’s syndrome, ADHD, and bipolar disorder, these were not the cause of his heinous crimes.

Rather, she said they contributed to his “rigid, black-and-white thinking,” where the only two options were Athena’s death or his life being ruined.

Athena Strand, 7, was strangled in the back of Tanner Horner’s FedEx truck in 2022.Family Handout
Under cross-examination, she admitted that, despite Horner’s diagnoses, he still had the capacity to plan, hide evidence, and lie to investigators to cover his tracks.

A jury will determine whether Horner will be sentenced to death.AP
Horner is awaiting sentencing for the November 2022 murder of Athena, after kidnapping her from outside her home in Paradise, Texas, and before dumping her naked body in a rural creek.

He will learn whether he will face the death penalty or life in prison.