Overview
- Horner, who pleaded guilty in April to capital murder and aggravated kidnapping, was sentenced Tuesday in Fort Worth after a punishment‑phase trial.
- Jurors found he would remain a danger and saw no mitigating factors, following weeks of testimony that included van audio and video showing the abduction and capturing the child’s final moments.
- Investigators presented DNA findings linking Horner to the crime, and a medical examiner said Athena died from blunt‑force injuries with smothering and strangulation after she was taken during a package delivery.
- Following Tuesday’s verdict, officials booked Horner into the Texas prison system, where he will be held on death row at the Allan B. Polunsky Unit in Livingston as his case proceeds through appeals.
- Under Texas procedure, all death sentences receive an automatic review by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, and the case has also spurred local changes to missing‑child alerts known as the Athena Alert.