Attorneys for Daniel Conahan Jr., a Florida death row inmate scheduled to be executed by lethal injection on Thursday, have asked the Supreme Court to grant a stay of execution. Conahan, 72, was sentenced to death for the April 1996 kidnapping and strangulation of Richard Montgomery.
Montgomery's body was discovered in a wooded area in Charlotte County, Florida, described as a trash-strewn dumping site. Authorities stated that Conahan killed Montgomery after paying him to pose for nude photographs. Investigators suspect Conahan of committing similar homicides in southwest Florida during the 1990s, though he has denied involvement in Montgomery's murder.
According to the petition filed with the Supreme Court, Conahan has been seeking DNA testing of evidence collected from the crime scene and Montgomery's body since March 2025. His legal team argues that such testing could "conclusively establish that he is not responsible for the death."
The petition further states that Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed Conahan's death warrant on August 11, while a motion for DNA testing was still pending. The state postconviction court denied the motion for DNA testing within 24 hours of the warrant being signed.
Conahan's attorneys are requesting that the court stay his imminent execution to allow for a review of his claims. As of Monday, Florida had executed 14 people this year.