DECATUR, Texas — The man facing a capital murder charge in connection to the death of 7-year-old Athena Strand has requested he be moved from the Wise County Jail - a new court filing reads.
On Dec. 20, an attorney for Tanner Horner requested he be moved to a new jail due to "cruel and unusual punishment," along with other reasons. The request came one year and 18 days after Strand's body was found in a rural creek in Wise County, and Horner was arrested for her murder.
Precisely, twenty days after the first anniversary of Strand's murder was observed. The state is seeking the death penalty.
Per the filing, Horner has been in solitary confinement near the jail intake area due to a prior suicide attempt and concerns that he may harm himself again. However, the filing adds that this area is intended to be short-term housing for inmates until they are processed and relocated.
The filing adds that Horner has been in this location since May 2023 and has inconsistent access to showers. His attorney wrote that he can also not access the full range of communication methods offered to other inmates.
According to the filing, Horner does not have a bed and is sleeping on the concrete floor with only a thin mattress and a blanket. His attorney added that he is subjected to bugs and insects that frequently inhabit the jail.
The filing reads that Horner has autism, that the conditions are impacting his ability to communicate with counsel effectively, and that if he remains in the area, his mental health may deteriorate to the point of incompetency.
Horner's attorney points out that the Tarrant County Jail may be a more suitable place to address Horner's mental health and housing concerns.
They added that Horner shouldn't be kept in the same place because he hasn't tried to harm himself since his previous suicide attempt.
A judge told Horner's attorneys this week during a hearing to try to resolve the issue with the sheriff's office before he issued any order.
Strand disappeared on Nov. 30, 2022. The Wise County community searched tirelessly for her when her family feared she had wandered off from her father's rural home in Paradise.
On Dec. 2, almost 72 hours after Athena went missing, police recovered her body from a creek near Boyd and arrested Horner, who was a FedEx contract driver at the time.
In a confession, Horner told police he dropped off a package at Strand's home and then accidentally hit her with his truck. He abducted the little girl, killed her, and then dumped her body in fear of what would happen to him, he said in a confession.
The package Horner was dropping off was Barbies, intended to be part of Strand's Christmas gifts.
Horner's trial has faced delays due to his counsel changing.