Horner's murder trial moved to Tarrant County

The trial of Tanner Horner, who is charged with capital crimes in connection with the death of Athena Strand, will take place in Tarrant County, a judge decided on Friday. ARCHIVE PHOTO

271st District Judge Brock Smith has granted Tanner Horner's request to move his felony trial out of Wise County.

In an order filed Friday afternoon, Smith granted the motion for a change of venue and ordered the case transferred to Tarrant County.

A hearing on the motion was held Monday in the 271st District Court in Decatur, where Smith considered testimony from four witnesses – two for the defense and two for the state – as well as affidavits from local citizens.

In granting the request, Smith pointed out that it would not be possible to move the trial there, even though the 271st District includes Jack County.

“The Court concludes that a transfer of the case to Jack County is not appropriate because Jack County has a much smaller population than Wise County and does not currently have courthouses that could adequately accommodate the trial of this case. The Court further concludes that conditions in Jack County, Texas, similar to those in Wise County necessitate this change of venue,” Smith said in the decision.

The decision further stated that Tarrant County “is an adjacent county that does not have the same conditions that would require transfer from Wise County.”

TANNER LYNN HORNER

Horner, who faces the death penalty in the murder of seven-year-old Athena Strand, requested the move because of the “inflammatory publicity prior to the trial” which his lawyers at the Regional Public Defenders Office (RPDO) said would prevent a fair trial.

At Monday's hearing, Dr. Bryan Edelman of Trial Innovations testified about his report, which said that the pretrial publicity in newspapers, television and social media made it difficult to find a fair jury for the case locally and created what he called “a presumption of guilt rather than a presumption of innocence” in the case.

RPDO Investigator Mike Johnson testified that he spoke to residents about the case and received four affidavits from people saying Horner could not get a fair trial in Wise County.

District Attorney James Stainton called Bridgeport Mayor Randy Singleton and Wise County Judge JD Clark, elected officials with knowledge of the community, to testify that Horner could receive a fair trial locally.

Stainton said Friday he was disappointed that the citizens of Wise County were unable to hear the case, but that it would not change the way his office handles the case.

“I have always believed that the citizens of Wise County should hear this case and that our citizens believe strongly in the Constitution and due process,” Stainton said in a written statement to the Messenger. “The affidavits I have submitted are all from citizens and local leaders who know Wise County. The testimony of JD Clark and Randy Singleton was compelling. I am very disappointed that our citizens of Wise County will not be able to hear this case. Wherever this case is heard, my office will continue to seek justice for Athena. This unfortunate geographic change will in no way change how we handle this case.”

A hearing date in this case has not yet been set.