Florida death row inmate petitions Supreme Court for stay over DNA testing

The short version

• Attorneys for Daniel Conahan Jr. petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court to halt his scheduled Thursday lethal injection.[Associated Press]
• Conahan, sentenced to death for the 1996 killing of Richard Montgomery, maintains his innocence and seeks forensic testing.[Associated Press]
• Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed the death warrant in August while testing motions remained pending before state courts.[Associated Press]
• It remains uncertain whether the Supreme Court will intervene before the scheduled execution date.[Associated Press]

Key facts

• Attorneys petitioned the Supreme Court to stay the Thursday execution of Florida death row inmate Daniel Conahan Jr.[Associated Press]
• Conahan was sentenced to death for the April 1996 murder of Richard Montgomery and denies involvement.[Associated Press]
• Conahan's petition states he has sought DNA testing of crime scene and victim evidence since March 2025.[Associated Press]
• Gov. Ron DeSantis signed Conahan's death warrant on August 11 while the DNA testing motion was pending.[Associated Press]
• A state postconviction court rejected the DNA testing motion within 24 hours of the warrant being signed.[Associated Press]

Sources

Outlet counts describe coverage, not independent confirmation. Reports may share a wire service or original source.

• Florida death row inmate seeks stay of execution seeking DNA evidence in 1996 crimeAssociated Press · Wire: associated-press