4.17.2026

It's Friday -- Let's Get Out of Here

at 2:30 PM

Random Friday Morning Thoughts





That was from 12/5/22.  


  • Horner trial:
    • The audio of the murder of Athena Strand was played yesterday in court.  If you want a detailed review of it -- and it is beyond shocking -- go to this WFAA link and scan down to "Here are some notes from Rebecca Lopez." She was in the courtroom yesterday as the audio was played. (That portion of the trial was not live-streamed, and I'm glad it wasn't.)
    • Gift link to the Dallas Morning News story about the day.

    • Video of Horner on the phone immediately after the killing and smoking a cigarette. 


    • Here he is preparing to wipe down the back of truck after the murder. He's at Love's in Rhome/Aurora and had gone inside to borrow the roll of paper towels.  Video

    • In another stunning video shown yesterday, Horner actually drove down the road of Athena's home the day after the killing.  He almost got trapped on his way out because of all of the police and search team traffic.  A woman informs him that a girl is missing. "Are you serious?" he replies. Video.

    • Athena's father took the stand yesterday.

    • If I heard everything correctly, the jury won't return until next Wednesday.  I think there will be non-streamed court hearings regarding the qualifications of the expected defense witnesses on those days. The defense is up next because the State rested yesterday.
    • The entire defense in this case is, "Give him life in prison without the possibility of parole instead of the death penalty." But I don't know how they can recover from yesterday. 
  • In other Wise County news.
    • Story.

    • The Messenger story about this, with a photo, is free. 

  • Pop culture death: Best known for that unforgettable car-wash scene in Cool Hand Luke (1967), Joy Harmon has died at 87 

  • There were a million crazy Trump quotes yesterday, but this might have been the funniest. 

  • Breaking: Iran just announced that the Strait of Hormuz is now open since Israel and Lebanon have called a truce.  It will remain that way, according to Iran, so so long as the truce is in effect.  So, good news, we are back where we started before the war. 
  • The Business Second™. 

  • Dateline Waco. A big factor was the State already tried him once and got a hung jury. (The AG's office, who were representing the government due to a DA conflict, offered one day in jail, credit for time served, but the judge was going to balk at it. That's why they came up with the 30 day offer.)


  • Extremely nerdy legal stuff: Yesterday, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals held that the art. 14.01 et. seq. statues which allow a warrantless arrest for offenses occurring within the “presence or view” of an officer, actually means what it says.   Barber v. State, PD-0510-25 (Tex.Crim.App, 2026) That means the officer must “perceive the offense through one of his five senses” and not simply arrive at the scene afterwards and talk to civilians.  It's application seems to be pretty limited (i.e. DWI wreck where person transported to hospital before any officer arrives?)
  • Lauren Whitener Clock: 6 years and 288 days.


at 8:30 AM

4.16.2026

Random Thursday Morning Thoughts





It's been 10 years since the unsolved murder of Missy Beavers at Creekside Church of Christ in Midlothian.

  • Horner trial notes: 
    • James Becker / VP Velocitor Solutions appears to be the man responsible for obtaining and safeguarding the critical video footage from inside the Fed Ex truck.  The case would have been very, very different without him. In fact, Horner might have gotten away with it. 

    • Kristen Cossota with the Texas DPS Crime Labs confused us all with her testimony.  I'm no DNA expert, but I think the bottom line is this: There was sperm DNA found in Athena's body, but the sample extracted was so weak that a positive ID of Horner could not be made. But he can't be excluded as the source either -- but neither can a significant portion of the population,
    • The mother of Athena finally testified. 

    • It seems very weird to me that sometimes the defense will seem to start asking questions which focuses on the possible civil liability of the subcontracting trucking firm. A relevance objection was even sustained yesterday.  I know FedEx settled with the family, but what about the subcontractor?
  • All we know is what is in the headline. 

  • The first meeting ever of the North Central Texas Sheriffs Coalition occurred yesterday in Runaway Bay with Gov. Abbott in attendance. The official press release from Abbott just said, "The Governor was joined by Representative Andy Hopper, Representative Shelley Luther, Jack County Sheriff Charles Hauger, sheriffs from across the state, and other state and local officials. "  But the Wise County Sheriff is in that photo, too. (I would love a roster of everyone in that photo. That's a ton of cowboy hats.)

  • Dateline New York. I really don't know if this will change anything.  

  • Overnight news.
     

  • Pete Hegseth, who is the most cringe-worthy member of the Trump Administration, went on a bizarre and long rant this morning against the press calling them "unpatriotic" as well as comparing them to the Pharisees in the Bible who discounted Jesus.  "I sat there in church, and I thought: our press are just like these Pharisees." Video. 

    • Also Pete Hegseth, Video.


  • Oh, yeah, that other war of one country invading another is still going on. From yesterday:



  • The Real Estate Second™. The most expensive home in Fort Worth is on the market.  Gift link. 


  • Messenger - Above the Fold

at 8:30 AM

4.15.2026

Random Wednesday Morning Thoughts




Cruz was actually beginning to believe he could beat Trump for the Republican nomination. 

  • Tanner Horner trial witnesses from yesterday: 
    • FBI digital forensic analyst Scott Morris.

      • Part of his examination of Horner's phone revealed this incriminating Google search after the murder.  

         

    • Wise County Constable Kevin Huffman, who has young girls of his home, actually talked to Horner as he was delivering a package right down the road from where the abduction will happen the next day. 

    • Two women testified that Horner assaulted them in a relationship while they were both 16 and while Horner was in his early 20s.  Both were identified by name on the video feed but their images were obscured. 

    • Jacqueline Ferrara, a former (?)  forensic analyst for DPS who began the DNA extraction process from Athena's body and other evidence, testified by video. 

  • DFW and Texas news:
    • Dateline Dallas. “The shooting in the Tran case happened Aug. 11, 2023, at the DFW Gun Range and Academy on West Mockingbird Lane. . . . . 'He heard a voice telling him that this young man was going to kill him,' defense attorney Neil Pask said. 'So he shot him.'”

    • This event allegedly occurred at the Omni Hotel in Fort Worth.  There is a lot going on here. Gift link. 

    • Not Baby Jessica!

    • Still not a lot of details in this weird story from Denton: 

    • I'm still not sure what all is going on here.  
  • Around the country:
    • Oh, my. And in Nebraska of all places. 

    • This happened last week and no one heard anything about it until the video was released yesterday. 


    • Dateline West Texas A&M.  A Randall County grand jury has indicted eight West Texas A&M students in connection with a February break-in at a building that formerly housed a university fraternity. Seems like overkill. 

  • And, finally, in News About Democracy Dying, we have more re-writing of history. Incredible.  Trump had already let these guys out of prison but had not pardoned them. Now U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro has filed motions on appeal asking a federal court to vacate their convictions. "Stand back and stand by," indeed.  It's over. 


    • Flashback: From March of last year. Wise County Rep. Andy Hopper welcomed convicted Oath Keeper Stewart Rhodes -- yep, the same one -- in his office after Rhodes was released by Trump from his 18-year sentence.  

  • I'll occasionally read a BigLaw subreddit just to see how miserable that life seems. 

at 8:30 AM
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