RAIFORD \u2014 With Thursday’s execution of Daniel Owen Conahan Jr. for the 1996 kidnapping and killing of Richard Allen Montgomery, there are six men from Charlotte and Sarasota counties remaining on Florida\u2019s Death Row.<\/p>\n
Among them are James David Robertson, Emanuel Johnson, Ernest Whitfield, Robert Trease, Dwight Eaglin and Jack Sliney.<\/p>\n
Before Tuesday, the latest region resident put to death was North Port’s Michael King, who was executed on March 17 for the 2008 killing of Denise Amber Lee<\/p>\n
On Feb. 13, 2025, James Ford was put to death. He was a DeSoto County resident when he murdered a couple that eventually led him to the Union County facility.<\/p>\n
Death Row is at Union Correctional Institution with miles of prison facility overlapping Bradford and Union counties along State Road 16. Within some of the prison acres, cows and bulls roam on state-owned lands near white guard towers.<\/p>\n
The others on Death Row include:<\/p>\n
Dwight Eaglin<\/p>\n
Dwight Eaglin is on Death Row for killing an officer at Charlotte Correctional Institution near Punta Gorda.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Dwight T. Eaglin,<\/p>\n
PHOTO PROVIDED<\/p>\n
Eaglin, 49, is the last surviving of three inmates convicted of killing Darla Lathrem, a corrections officer, and fellow inmate Charlie Fuston.<\/p>\n
The 2003 killings took place during an attempted escape by Eaglin and two other inmates, Michael Jones and Stephen Smith.<\/p>\n
All three were convicted and sentenced to death in 2006. Jones and Smith have both since died in prison, leaving Eaglin.<\/p>\n
Eaglin was convicted 20 years ago and sentenced to death, and spent most of that time on Florida\u2019s death row at the Florida State Prison in Starke.<\/p>\n
He sought a retrial but was denied.<\/p>\n
He did have a resentencing hearing in January, where a second Charlotte County jury agreed with the first and sent him back to Death Row.<\/p>\n
Emanuel Johnson<\/p>\n
On Oct. 4, 1988, a Sarasota woman was found dead, suffering 24 stab wounds and blunt trauma to the head.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Emanuel Johnson<\/p>\n
PHOTO PROVIDED<\/p>\n
Iris White was 73 at the time of her death.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt the crime scene, police discovered an open living room window and a screen that had been cut open,\u201d the court documents state. \u201cEmanuel Johnson\u2019s fingerprints were found on that windowsill.\u201d<\/p>\n
Previously, he had worked for her. Other biological evidence was also found at the scene and he later confessed.<\/p>\n
James David Robertson<\/p>\n
James Robertson was an inmate at the Charlotte Correctional Institution south of Punta Gorda when he killed his cellmate, Frank Hart, by strangling him with a pair of socks in 2008, prosecutors say.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
James Robertson, also known as James David Robertson.<\/p>\n
PHOTO PROVIDED<\/p>\n
Robertson was featured in an episode of a Netflix documentary, \u201cI Am a Killer.\u201d<\/p>\n
Robertson said the killing was the means to an end. He entered the Department of Corrections as a teenager, sentenced to just four years for a burglary and assault, according to previous reporting.<\/p>\n
\u201cI finished my original time way back in the late \u201980s,\u201d Robertson said in one interview. \u201cI got a bunch more time. I don\u2019t really even know how much time \u2014 about 100 years, I guess. It got to the point where I just said f\u2014 this s\u2014, I\u2019m going on Death Row. So I said well, I\u2019ll just go ahead and kill my cellmate. I felt pretty confident I could overpower him.\u201d<\/p>\n
Jack Sliney<\/p>\n
On June 18, 1992, George Blumberg was found slain by his wife. The two owned and operated a pawn shop on the Charlotte County side of Englewood.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Jack Sliney on Florida\u2019s Death Row<\/p>\n
PHOTO PROVIDED<\/p>\n
Blumberg had been stabbed with a knife and bludgeoned with a hammer.<\/p>\n
A witness said he saw two men enter the store and go to Blumberg about jewelry.<\/p>\n
A composite sketch made the rounds.<\/p>\n
A young man, Thomas Capeles, was shown the sketch but did not recognize either. It was believed Capeles may have known them due to their ages.<\/p>\n
Capeles later contacted police officer after Sliney asked if he wanted to buy a gun.<\/p>\n
Capeles said Sliney \u201clooked similar\u201d to a man in the sketch.<\/p>\n
\u201cCapeles agreed to assist in the investigation, and a controlled gun buy was arranged. The serial number of the gun that was bought from Sliney matched the gun registry from the Blumberg\u2019s pawnshop,\u201d court documents stated. \u201cAnother controlled gun buy was arranged, and these guns also matched the pawnshop registry. Sliney was arrested shortly after the second gun sale.\u201d<\/p>\n
A fingerprint at the scene was linked to Keith Witteman, according to court documents.<\/p>\n
Sliney would confess to the killing of Blumberg.<\/p>\n
\u201cSliney told officers that he and Witteman went into the store and argued with Blumberg over the price of a necklace,\u201d it states. \u201cHe reported that Witteman told him to hit Blumberg and then said that he would have to kill Blumberg because the victim could identity them.\u201d<\/p>\n
During his trial, Sliney said it was Witteman who killed Blumberg, contradicting his original statements.<\/p>\n
Robert Trease<\/p>\n
Robert Trease and an accomplice robbed Paul Edeson in Sarasota. But in doing so, Trease stabbed Edeson to death<\/p>\n
Trease and his accomplice, Hope Siegel, planned a date for her and Edeson so she could learn where Edeson kept a safe, court documents state.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Robert J. Trease<\/p>\n
PHOTO PROVIDED<\/p>\n
\u201cSiegel arrived at the victim\u2019s home and after spending time with the victim, determined that he did not have a safe. She left the victim\u2019s residence and met with Trease, to inform him that the victim did not own a safe,\u201d it states.<\/p>\n
Trease followed her back to Edeson\u2019s home, where he attacked Edeson hoping to learn the safe\u2019s location.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe victim continued to insist that he did not have a safe in his house,\u201d it states. \u201cTrease told Siegel to get a gun, which he put to the victim\u2019s head as he continued the questioning.\u201d<\/p>\n
Trease fired a bullet into Edeson\u2019s head, although he survived that. He then asked Siegel to get a knife.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe then cut the victim\u2019s throat resulting in his death. Subsequent to his arrest, Trease denied any knowledge or involvement in the crime. Siegel, however, gave a detailed statement implicating them both.\u201d<\/p>\n
Siegel received 20 years in prison.<\/p>\n
Ernest Whitfield:<\/p>\n
Ernest Whitfield was sentenced to death for the June 19, 1995 murder of Claretha Reynolds.<\/p>\n
He was visiting Reynolds\u2019s Sarasota home where he asked her and two other women for money; all three, including a former girlfriend, denied him, according to court records.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Ernest Whitfield<\/p>\n
PHOTO PROVIDED<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen all three women refused, Whitfield attempted to grab (Estella) Pierre\u2019s purse,\u201d it states. \u201cReynolds put Whitfield into a headlock and proceeded to throw him out of her house. Before leaving, Whitfield exclaimed, \u2018I am going to kill all three of you bitches.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
He returned early in the morning, but was denied entrance.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhitfield then broke into Reynolds\u2019 home armed with a large knife. Whitfield proceeded into the bedroom where (a woman) and her child lay sleeping. He raped (the victim) and motioned that he would stab her if she made any noise \u2026 Whitfield left (the victim) and went into the bedroom where Reynolds and her five children were sleeping.\u201d<\/p>\n
He returned to the room of the sexual assault victim and told her he\u2019d stabbed Reynolds \u201cnumerous\u201d times.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhitfield fled the scene and Reynolds died soon after the police arrived,\u201d it states. \u201cAfter his arrest, Whitfield confessed to stabbing Reynolds and showed authorities to the murder weapon.\u201d<\/p>\n
He was high on drugs at the time.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"RAIFORD \u2014 With Thursday’s execution of Daniel Owen Conahan Jr. for the 1996 kidnapping and killing of Richard…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":396434,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[209,211,210],"class_list":["post-396433","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-cape-coral","tag-cape-coral","tag-cape-coral-headlines","tag-cape-coral-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/396433","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=396433"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/396433\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/396434"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=396433"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=396433"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=396433"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}