HOUSTON — A Houston woman charged with murder in the death of an 18-year-old made her first court appearance Friday morning.
Last week, Shania Laneice Turner, 24, was arrested in connection with the death of Tierra Horn, 18, whose body was found near Buffalo Bayou on Jan. 5.
Turner and Horn were in a "dating relationship," according to court records.
Turner is accused of strangling Horn to death after an argument that stemmed from Turner’s belief that Horn gave her an STD.
Prosecutors said Turner killed Horn and left her body on a hiking trail.
Turner appeared in court Friday, where her attorney's request to have her $100,000 bond lowered was denied. State prosecutors previously asked for the bond to be set at $500,000.
A judge told Turner that if she bonded out, she'd be placed on house arrest, must wear an ankle monitor, and have no contact with the victim's family.
"She is merely being accused of murder at this point. There is a long way between an accusation and conviction," said Turner's defense attorney Brett Podolsky.
Podolsky said his client has no criminal history or prior history of domestic violence.
Meanwhile, prosecutors said they'll do whatever they can to get justice for the victim's family.
"She would have been celebrating her 19th birthday 12 days from now and so we will do what we can to get justice and go where the evidence leads and hopefully provide her family some sense of comfort," said prosecutor Kelly Marshall.
Marshall confirmed there are surveillance videos allegedly linking Turner to the death of Horn.
"It includes surveillance from an apartment complex, and ultimately what the police collected at the scene, they canvassed everywhere they saw surveillance, and obviously took a look at that, and it does play into this case, but as this investigation is ongoing, I don't want to give away too many details at this early stage,” she said.
It is unclear how long the two had been dating.
Horn was reported missing before her body was found near Buffalo Bayou around an apartment complex along Nance Street. Houston police pronounced her dead at the scene.
According to the medical examiner's office, Horn's death was caused by "compression" to her neck.
Turner's next court date is set for March 27, 2024.