A southern Minnesota man received an 18-year term for fatally shooting his former girlfriend and leaving her body beneath a freeway overpass in Owatonna.
Jason L. Horner, 41, of Faribault was sentenced Dec. 22 in Steele County District Court after being found guilty following a two-week trial of second-degree intentional murder and illegal gun possession in the shooting on May 29, 2023, of Sabrina L. Schnoor, 25, of Elysian, Minn.
With credit for time in jail since his arrest, Horner is expected to serve the first 10⅓ years in prison and the balance on supervised release.
A few days before sentencing, the prosecution argued in a court filing for Horner to receive a 19½-year term and pointed out, “Sabrina Schnoor spent her last moments with a gun held against her mouth, or worse, inside her mouth. Her body was left like trash underneath a dirty overpass while [Horner] fled the scene.”
State Attorney General Keith Ellison, whose office led the prosecution of Horner at the request of the County Attorney’s Office, said in a statement that “Jason Horner’s crimes are shocking and appalling. ... I am glad he has now been sentenced and will serve time for the pain and suffering he caused.”
In July 2017, Schnoor petitioned the court for an order of protection, accusing Horner of beating, stalking and harassing her and threatening to kill her. That same year, another former girlfriend filed a similar petition with the court and recounted nearly identical behavior at the home she had shared with Horner in Austin, Minn.
Along with this case, Horner’s criminal history in Minnesota includes two convictions for assault, four for drug offenses and one each of burglary and violating a restraining order.
Schnoor’s obituary noted that “she enjoyed fishing with her grandpa, camping, music of all genres and being in nature. From birth, she was obsessed with animals of all kinds and loved walking her dog. She loved kids, especially her son Daniel, who was the light of her world.”
