Denise Amber Lee was a 21-year-old stay at home mother of two young children with a husband who worked three jobs to support the family. She was abducted from her North Port, Florida, home on the 17th of January, 2008, by Michael King.
On the day of her abduction, Denise was at home with the children while her husband, Nathan, was at work. Due to the hot weather, Denise had left the windows open in the home. She last spoke Nathan at around 11AM. When Nathan arrived home at 3:30PM, he found the couple’s two sons, Noah and Adam, home alone in their cribs. Searching the house, he discovered Denise’s cell phone and purse. He became concerned for her well-being; Denise would never leave the children home alone. Nathan called 911. This would be the first 911 call made in this tragic and preventable case.
Unbeknownst to Nathan, Denise had been abducted by King. He forced the young mother into his car and tied her up and proceeded to drive around. A neighbour of Denise had spotted King’s dark green 1995 Chevy Camaro drive around the street several times before pulling into Denise’s drive at around 2PM. Another witness spotted Denise struggling in the car on U.S. 41. This witness called 911 to report what she had seen. In a disturbing case of pure negligence, the 911 operator never passed the information on to deputies patrolling nearby. After driving around for a while, King drove Denise to his home where he had set up a “rape room” where she was again tied up and raped.
In what could be described as nothing short of a miracle, Denise managed to get a hold of her captor’s cell phone and call 911 at around 6:14PM. She managed to stay on the line for nearly six and a half minutes and described what had happened to her. Over the course of the call, Denise begged for help, saying “please” a total of 17 times. The phone call was traced to King and authorities arrived at his door. King and Denise were nowhere to be found but in his home, they discovered the “rape room” and a piece of duct tape that had Denise’s hair attached to it. By now, however, King had forced Denise back into his car and was driving to his cousin’s home.
At his cousin’s home, King asked to borrow gasoline and a shovel. While there, his cousin, Harold Muxlow, saw Denise in the back seat of the car. She was struggling and pleading for help. She begged Muxlow to call police. He didn’t and King drove off with the items and Denise. While Mulox didn’t call police, he told his daughter what he had seen and she subsequently called 911.
One last 911 call would be made of behalf of Denise on that fateful day. While at a red light on U.S. 41, King pulled up alongside Jane Kowalski who had her windows opened. She glanced at his car and saw Denise screaming in the back seat and struggling. She witnessed Denise’s lady desperate attempt for intervention. Jane called police. Due to a dispatcher mix-up, the 911 called was never relayed to officers in the vicinity. Another chance at survival shot down by negligence and incompetence.
Two days later, Denise’s nude body was discovered in a shallow grave just three miles from where Jane spotted Denise screaming for help. She had been raped and then shot in the head. Michael King was arrested and ultimately found guilty of kidnapping with intent to commit a felony, sexual battery, and first degree murder. He was sentenced to death.
Denise Amber Lee was ultimately failed by multiple agencies. Her death became a symbol of the flaws in the 911 systems. If only one 911 operator that day had taken action, then Amber could still be alive today. Communication mistakes spawned a broader movement to change the way emergency calls are handled. The Denise Amber Lee Act was passed in April of 2008 and it provides optional training for 911 operatives. Her family continue to lobby for a new law to be passed nationwide which would see mandatory training for 911 dispatchers.
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