Florida death row inmate seeks Supreme Court stay of execution over DNA evidence request

Attorneys for Florida death row inmate Daniel Conahan Jr., 72, petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court on September 7, 2026, to stay his execution scheduled for September 10, 2026. Conahan was sentenced to death for the 1996 murder of Richard Montgomery. Conahan has requested DNA testing since March 2025, but a Florida court denied the motion within 24 hours of Governor Ron DeSantis signing his death warrant on August 11, 2026. Florida has executed 14 people in 2026.

Supreme Court execution stay request

• ▪Attorneys for Florida death row inmate Daniel Conahan Jr. petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court on September 7, 2026, to stay his execution scheduled for September 10, 2026.
• ▪Daniel Conahan Jr., 72, is scheduled to die by lethal injection on September 10, 2026, for the 1996 kidnapping and strangulation of Richard Montgomery.
• ▪The state of Florida has executed 14 people in the year 2026 as of September 7, 2026.

DNA testing motion denial

• ▪Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed the death warrant for Daniel Conahan Jr. on August 11, 2026, while Conahan's motion for DNA testing was still pending.
• ▪A Florida state postconviction court denied Daniel Conahan Jr.'s motion for DNA testing within 24 hours of Governor Ron DeSantis signing Conahan's death warrant on August 11, 2026.

Montgomery murder case details

• ▪Authorities stated that Daniel Conahan Jr. killed Richard Montgomery after paying him to pose for nude photos, and they suspect Conahan of similar homicides in southwest Florida during the 1990s.
• ▪Richard Montgomery was killed in April 1996, and his nude, emasculated body was found in a trash-filled wooded area in Charlotte County, Florida.

Conahan innocence claims

• ▪Daniel Conahan Jr. has denied involvement in the murder of Richard Montgomery and has requested DNA testing of crime scene and body evidence since March 2025 to establish his innocence.
• ▪In his Supreme Court petition filed on September 7, 2026, Daniel Conahan Jr. stated he is not asking to be declared innocent or released immediately, but only to stay his execution so the court can review his claims.