July 25, 2024 • 28 mins
Join us as we explore the tragic abduction and murder of Denise Amber Lee in Englewood, Florida. Despite a brave 911 call from her captor's phone, critical errors by dispatchers delayed help. Discover how Denise's husband Nathan turned grief into advocacy, pushing for nationwide improvements in emergency response. Through the Denise Amber Lee Foundation, Denise's legacy persists, ensuring better training for 911 operators to prevent future tragedies.
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Episode Transcript
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(00:00):
Welcome to Mysteries and Mimosa's where we uncover the unknown.
(00:13):
I'm Max and alongside me is my co-host, the ever insightful Aria.
Hi everyone.
Hi Aria, we're thrilled to have you with us today as we get into another episode.
But before we begin, don't forget to like, subscribe and follow us on your favorite podcast
platform or YouTube channel.
Stay updated with our latest episode and exclusive content.
(00:36):
Visit our website at mysteriesandmimosas.net for more in-depth articles and additional
insights.
Also connect with us on social media to join the conversation and share your own theories
and discoveries.
And I just have to give a shout out to Max.
He has been working really hard on updating our website.
So please take a minute and go visit.
(00:57):
It looks great.
Oh wow, now a lot of pressure.
I better have this updated before this is released.
Yes.
It will be.
Okay.
Head on over and check it out.
And I did receive some feedback.
I think listener Bill may just be old because he said, I can't find the episode.
Head on over to the main page mysteriesandmimosas.net.
(01:17):
Up top, you'll see a banner that says episodes.
You'll see season one, you'll see season two.
We are in season two right now.
When you click season two, just look for the person that you want to explore.
And if you're new to listening with us, you can start in season one.
You could start in season one.
(01:37):
That's true.
You can start anywhere.
Yeah.
You can finish anywhere.
You can stop anytime.
There's no rules here.
No, no pressure.
Nope.
All right.
All right.
So each week we kick off our Thursday episode by diving into a bit of nostalgia and historical
fun.
We were focusing on the year 2008.
Max is in the hot seat again this week.
(01:58):
So let's see how well he remembers the moments that shaped 2008.
And just so everyone knows, I'm in the hot seat because Aria, I think she cheated, but
she did get a hundred percent.
So I will stay in the hot seat until I'm able to get 100% of the trivia questions right.
I think we need to put some parameters on this because I feel like you probably have
like 18 questions, which makes it nearly impossible.
(02:20):
No, I don't.
I don't, but I don't like your accusatory tone of that.
I cheated.
It's not an accusation.
It's just a suspicion.
Hmm.
There's a difference.
Well, I don't like it.
Look it up.
Don't like it.
Okay.
All right.
Are you ready for question number one?
I'm born ready.
Which film won the Academy Award for best picture in 2008?
(02:41):
Oh man.
I don't really follow films.
I don't follow movies and I don't even remember what was popular in 2008.
Can you give me a hint?
Who's the actor?
Who's the main actor?
I think it's Hillary Swank.
I think.
Wow.
Maybe I don't know.
Here we go again.
(03:02):
You don't know anything about your own trivia questions.
That's okay.
What does it start with?
No, not you're mean.
What's the genre?
I don't know.
I've never seen it.
Is it an action movie?
I've never seen it.
Have I ever seen it?
I don't think so.
Do you think I'll know this?
I don't know.
Well, you know, going back to 2008, I know where I was.
I know what I was doing.
(03:22):
I've never seen it, but was it Slumdog Millionaire?
It was.
How did you know?
I didn't think you had ever even seen that movie.
No, I haven't.
It's just a wild guess.
Huh.
Seems suspicious.
All right.
Question number two.
Which social media platform was launched in 2008 and quickly gained popularity?
(03:45):
Does it still have the same name today?
Yes.
Do I fail at updating this?
I'm not giving you any more hints.
Is it Discord?
No, it's not.
Dang it.
Instagram.
Oh, really?
Yeah.
I thought maybe Instagram was a little bit older.
Okay.
I was trying to think outside the box.
Failure number one.
All right.
(04:06):
Question number three.
Which American swimmer won a record eight gold medals at the 2008?
Michael Phelps.
Oh, yeah.
It is.
Good job.
Thanks.
All right.
Then we have one last question.
Are you ready?
I'm ready.
What was the name of the financial crisis that began in 2008?
Oh, that was the housing crisis.
(04:28):
Nope.
The global financial crisis, also known as the Great Recession.
The Great Recession.
Well, yeah, but it led to the financial crisis for housing.
No, everyone knows that as the Great Recession.
I mean, we're not going to talk about what it led to, what led to it.
It was called the Great Recession.
I feel like you cheated a little bit on question number one.
(04:51):
So no, you don't get it.
Why would you think I cheated on question number one?
Because you literally have never watched that movie.
No, but-
And I put the questions and the answers this week, I put them in the Google document and
I said, don't go to the bottom and look at the answers before.
(05:12):
And I think you did.
I do think you did.
Don't you think if I would have cheated on question one, don't you think I would have
got 100% across the board?
No, because then it would have been way too obvious and you didn't remember them all.
You just happened to remember that one.
I rest my case.
I think there was cheating, but even if there wasn't, you still lost anyways.
(05:33):
Listen, if I was going to cheat, which I wouldn't, I would never do that.
But if I were going to cheat, I'd have got 100%.
So that makes me wonder when I do get 100%, if you'll even validate it.
Well, I won't make the mistake of putting the questions and answers in the same document
that you have access to next time.
And then there will be no question.
(05:54):
Okay.
You know, you know, this is all in good fun, Max.
I don't really think you cheated.
Moving on.
Do you have today's mimosa recipe?
Today's mimosa recipe is an easy one.
It's pineapple mint mimosa.
This recipe includes one cup of pineapple juice, fresh mint leaves, and your favorite
champagne or sparkling wine, and add a pineapple slice for a garnish.
(06:16):
It's super easy.
All you have to do is crush up the mint leaves to get that flavor out there and mix it with
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Add it to your favorite cocktail glass.
And if you want to drink in style, you'll create this masterpiece using some amazing
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If you haven't picked up your set, head over to dragonglassware.com.
Enter our promo code mysteries and mimosas podcast and Dragon Glassware will give you
(06:40):
a generous discount of 10% off your entire order.
Not to mention every purchase helps us continue to bring you episode week after week.
So what do you have for us today?
Today?
Besides a horrible trivia segment.
Horrible trivia segment.
That's debatable.
Continue.
What do you got?
What do you got for us today?
(07:00):
Today's case is the case of Denise Amber Lee.
Denise Amber Lee was born on August 6th, 1986 in Inglewood, Florida.
Denise was quiet and introverted.
She did well in school and was a self-described bookworm.
In her senior year of high school, Denise met Nathan Lee.
Nathan was very social and good at sports.
(07:21):
Denise asked Nathan out on their first date, which is when their love story began.
Nathan bought Denise a $40 heart-shaped ring for their first Valentine's Day together.
And Denise treasured that ring and wore it every day after that.
I love that.
Me too.
I love that story.
The two fell in love and were married in 2005.
(07:42):
Denise and Nathan then started their own family and had two little boys, Adam and Noah.
Nathan was a hard worker and worked multiple jobs to provide for his family and ensure
that Denise could stay home and care for their boys.
January 17th, 2008 started like any other day for the Lee family.
(08:03):
Nathan left for work early that morning, leaving Denise and their boys in their rented home
in North Port, Florida.
During his lunch break around 11.09 a.m., Nathan called Denise and chatted.
During the conversation, Denise mentioned that the house felt stuffy, so Nathan told
her to open the windows and let in some fresh air.
Denise told Nathan she had already done so.
(08:26):
At 3 p.m., Nathan called Denise to let her know he was on his way home from work.
Oddly though, Denise didn't answer.
During his 25-minute drive home from work, Nathan tried calling Denise eight more times
with no answer.
So he was really worried.
Yeah.
It sounds like it was pretty typical for him to call her on his lunch break and then when
he was on his way home and not typical for her to not answer, especially after he's called
(08:50):
nine times.
When Nathan arrived home, he noticed the windows were all closed, even though Denise had told
him she had opened them earlier.
Nathan went inside and saw Denise's keys and cell phone inside the house, but he couldn't
find Denise.
Nathan found Adam and Noah together in one crib.
And remind me, how old was Adam and Noah at this time?
(09:13):
Noah was two and Adam was six months old.
Oh, okay.
So it's not weird for them to be in the crib.
They're young.
Yeah.
So it's not sure that they were in one crib together or not.
Probably.
So Nathan kept looking for Denise, but once he saw that the windows were closed but not
locked, he knew for sure that something was wrong because Denise would have never shut
(09:36):
the windows and not locked them as well.
So Nathan immediately called 911 to report Denise missing.
As soon as Nathan hung up the phone with 911, he called Denise's dad, Rick Goff.
Rick was a detective for the Charlotte County Sheriff's Office.
Fortunately, due to Rick's connections, Denise's case was taken seriously immediately and a
(09:57):
large scale search was started right away.
Wow.
That's scary to come home and not know where your wife is.
Yeah, it is.
And your boys are home alone.
That's the worst part.
He knows something's not right.
She's not going to leave them.
But yeah, her keys and her phone and everything are there.
So yeah, that's scary.
But fortunately in this case, you know, her dad is a detective, so that those connections
(10:22):
help move the case in the right direction.
Sure.
Police began canvassing the neighborhood to see if anyone witnessed anything unusual that
day.
One neighbor, Jennifer Eckert, reported that she saw a white male driving a green Camaro
circling the neighborhood multiple times around 2 30 that afternoon.
(10:43):
Jennifer said she saw the vehicle in the Lee's driveway, but assumed the driver was just
lost and unfamiliar with the area.
When Jennifer checked again 10 minutes later, the vehicle was gone.
Police quickly alerted law enforcement to be on the lookout for the green Camaro and
the search for Denise continued.
Okay, so they alerted law enforcement to be on the lookout for the green Camaro.
(11:03):
So basically what that is, is a BOLO.
And that just goes from one dispatch to multiple agencies that are surrounding the immediate
area so that more than just the investigating agency is looking for them.
So they do that.
And then at 614 that evening, a 911 call was actually received from Denise herself.
(11:25):
Denise had managed to use her captor's cell phone to call for help.
Denise relate information to dispatch about her name, address, the fact she had been taken
against her will by a stranger, and the make and color of her captor's car.
Denise was pretending to have a conversation with her kidnapper while she was relaying
this information to dispatch.
(11:46):
So she was doing it covertly, obviously.
He didn't know that she had his phone and had dialed 911.
So she was trying to relay this information at this, well, at the same time, you know,
not alerting him that she was talking to someone else.
So she's essentially relaying information to dispatch, acting as though she's having
(12:06):
a conversation with her captor by just saying things out loud to help alert the police about
her important information to lead to her recovery.
Yeah, exactly.
She's very smart.
And so she's using this opportunity to relay key details to dispatch.
Denise pleaded for her kidnapper to let her go during this call.
(12:30):
Denise talked about her boys and how badly she wanted to go see her family.
Denise reportedly used the word please 17 times, pleading for her kidnapper to let her
go.
Seven minutes into that phone call, her captor realized his phone was missing and the call
abruptly ended.
And that's super scary.
I would hate to have to be the dispatcher listening to that.
(12:50):
I was just going to say, can you imagine being in the situation where you're listening to
that and just trying your hardest to figure out what's going on and get the information
out there and trying to find her?
And on top of that, poor Denise, how terrifying of a situation that is.
And she's so smart to be thinking ahead that way.
Yeah, absolutely.
And we talk about trauma when police see things, they're traumatized, when citizens see things,
(13:15):
they're traumatized.
But a lot of times we forget about the dispatchers who have to take those emotional calls.
And really, they're essentially helpless.
They're just the lifeline to get help to the person who calls in.
I would imagine every dispatcher wishes they could just be there to give the help immediately,
but they just can't.
So this call taker had to be extremely traumatized from this call.
(13:36):
I always say that.
I could never be a dispatcher.
It takes a very special person to do that job.
And I just I couldn't do it because you're right.
I would not be able to be sitting in a dispatch center, hearing all of these things, hearing
these horrible things happening and not being there to see and to be able to help.
I couldn't do it.
(13:56):
So kudos to everyone out there who is a 911 dispatcher without you.
I mean, we couldn't or police couldn't do their job.
So unfortunately, the phone that Denise was using to call 911 was a burner phone.
So police were unable to track an exact location of where that call was coming from.
Yeah.
(14:17):
And if you don't know what a burner phone is, that's essentially one of those pay to
talk phones that you can get just at 7-Eleven.
And there's no real verification behind, you know, setting that up.
You could just basically pay prepay for a phone and have it activated and use it.
And a lot of times, criminals use these burner phones to commit further crimes.
But they're not completely untraceable either.
(14:38):
Yeah.
So even though it was a burner phone and they couldn't track her exact location, police
were able to find out who the phone belonged to.
And that was 36 year old Michael Lee King.
Michael Lee King was a recently divorced father of one.
Michael was unemployed and his home was about to be foreclosed on.
(14:58):
Michael lived near the Lees, but they didn't know him.
Michael reportedly saw Denise outside of her home, cutting her two year old son's hair
and decided to kidnap her that day.
So it sounds like it was just an opportunity, right?
The neighbor reported that she saw him driving around the neighborhood multiple times.
He was looking for his opportunity.
And when he saw Denise out on her porch, cutting her son's hair, that was his opportunity.
(15:23):
Oh, I imagine because he's circling, he probably watched her several times and kept circling
and seeing if she's still out there.
And you're right.
It was a crime of opportunity.
After Michael kidnapped Denise, he took her to his home where he bound her with duct tape
and repeatedly raped her.
Michael then took Denise, who was bound and laying on the rear floor of the car, to his
(15:44):
cousin Harold's home, where he asked to borrow a shovel, a can of gas, and a flashlight.
It was here where Denise managed to free herself and jump out of the car.
Denise yelled for Harold to call 911.
Harold asked Michael what was going on as Michael fought with Denise and forced her
back into the car.
It was during this struggle that Denise was able to take Michael's burner phone and make
(16:06):
that secret call to 911.
Wow.
I'm just curious, why didn't Harold do something more?
I mean, I don't care who it is.
If somebody shows up to my house, whether it's a best friend, brother, cousin, it doesn't
matter who it is.
If I see a girl get out of his car and they're screaming for help, I'm not just going to
be like, hey, Michael, what's going on?
(16:27):
I mean, I'd be probably helping that person, wouldn't you think?
You would think so.
After Michael left, Harold went inside and told his 17-year-old daughter Sabrina what
had happened.
At 6.23 PM, Sabrina placed the third call to 911 to report the incident.
So Harold, I'm not sure if he was ever going to report it besides telling his daughter,
(16:48):
but she went ahead and did the right thing and called 911.
Seven minutes later, at 6.30 PM, a fourth 911 call was received from a woman by the
name of Jane Kowalski.
Jane reported that she thought she was witnessing a child abduction in progress.
Jane said she was stopped next to a green Camaro at a stoplight and observed a white
male driving the car.
(17:09):
The man was driving with one hand and using his other hand to hold something down in the
back seat.
Jane said she could hear what sounded like a child screaming and saw a hand banging on
the rear passenger window.
Jane attempted to follow the vehicle to get the license plate, but the driver was able
to evade her and get away.
The call lasted more than nine minutes, with Jane relaying cross streets and locations
(17:32):
to the dispatcher.
At 9.15 PM, an observant police officer spotted a green Camaro matching the description of
that bolo that was sent out earlier that day.
The police officer stopped the Camaro and as he walked up, he observed a muddy shovel
laying in the back seat.
He noticed that the driver, identified as Michael Lee King, was soaking wet from the
(17:52):
waist down and his shoes were covered in mud.
The burner phone that Denise used to call 911 was found in his pocket.
Michael had removed both the battery as well as the SIM card from the phone.
Michael was arrested on the spot.
Wow.
So there's a lot to process here.
In the battery and the SIM card, he's obviously trying to evade detection.
(18:15):
He knows that the 911 call was placed, probably because he looked at his call log and saw
that she called 911.
And so in order to try to stop anybody from tracking that phone, he's taken the SIM card
out so it no longer talks to the towers.
He's taken the battery out just in case it connects to a wifi network somewhere.
He's gone through great lengths to stop law enforcement from finding him.
(18:36):
Two days later, on January 19th, Denise's naked body was found in a shallow grave in
a muddy field.
Denise had been shot in the head.
The field where Denise's body was found was only five miles from where Jane saw the Camaro
and called 911.
The following day, Jane saw the story on the news and recognized a photo of Michael as
(18:57):
the same man she had seen driving the green Camaro.
Jane called the police to see if they needed any further information from her.
Jane was shocked though when the police had no idea who she was or anything about the
911 call she had placed back on January 17th.
Yikes, that's sad.
Yeah.
It turned out that the dispatcher never sent officers out to investigate the incident and
(19:22):
even worse, had never even logged the call.
The call taker claimed she yelled out to two other dispatchers to dispatch an officer.
The two dispatchers blamed shift change in the busy dispatch center for not sending anyone
out.
The dispatchers were subsequently suspended without pay.
And when the sheriff was asked why they were not fired for their gross negligence, he claimed
(19:43):
it was a missed opportunity.
Sadly, it was later reported that a deputy was on the road Jane saw Michael turn down
before she lost him.
Okay, I call that more than a missed opportunity.
I mean, you know, I know that they have a lot going on in dispatch centers.
Sometimes they're overwhelmed with a tremendous amount of call volume.
(20:04):
But when you have somebody saying, hey, there's a kidnapping in progress, that is a priority
one call you send officers to that immediately code three, which means emergent lights and
sirens, you send everybody that's available to try to figure this out because the last
thing you want is the outcome that we have here.
Right.
I mean, on top of that, so say it is busy in the dispatch center.
(20:28):
You're taking a call like that, that's not something you're going to ever forget, let
alone forget in that same shift.
I mean, personally, again, I'm not a dispatcher, but I would think if I'm taking a call like
that, and when that call is ended, do you not turn to the other dispatchers and say,
that was crazy?
Like, who's responding to that?
Did you send somebody out there?
What's going on with it?
(20:48):
Did they find the car?
Like, how are you not following up on that?
It makes zero sense to me.
And it's so disappointing.
And the worst part for Denise's dad, Rick, is that the same department responsible for
the mishandling of the 911 call was the same department that he worked for.
And he had worked there for 25 years.
(21:09):
This outcome could be completely different.
Had that dispatcher done their job appropriately, they would have dispatched the officer who
was in the area at that time.
They would have got Michael stopped.
They would have been able to save her.
And yet here we are.
Yeah, absolutely.
For what reason?
No good reason.
There's no, it's inexcusable.
Yeah, it's devastating.
And it has to just, I mean, if we have any dispatchers listening, it has to frustrate
(21:32):
you beyond belief because the dispatchers I know would never let anything like that
happen.
They get overwhelmed from time to time, but typically they do this job for a specific
reason and that's to help.
And I'm sorry, but this dispatcher failed every step of the way.
So Michael pled not guilty to the charges of first degree murder, sexual battery, and
(21:55):
kidnapping.
Michael denied being involved and tried to claim that both he and Denise were kidnapped
and blindfolded.
However, the evidence against Michael was overwhelming.
There were several witnesses who testified in the trial, including Michael's own cousin
Harold.
Denise's DNA was found in Michael's home and the Camaro.
There was a combination of Michael's and Denise's DNA found on the duct tape that was used to
(22:19):
bind her and Denise's shorts were found in the woods near her grave and those contained
Michael's semen.
It sounds like they have an airtight case.
Yeah.
I mean, there were several witnesses, right?
We had several 911 calls that came into dispatch saying, Hey, I'm seeing this and they're describing
Michael and the vehicle he's driving.
(22:40):
So, and oh, by the way, now Harold steps up and does the right thing at trial.
Yeah.
So he did end up testifying.
So I do want to give a warning because this next bit of information is graphic.
The medical examiner reported that Denise had been brutally raped.
Denise had several bruises and defensive wounds on her body.
The medical examiner found that Denise had been shot at point blank range right above
(23:02):
her left eyebrow.
The worst part is there was blood found in Denise's lungs, which indicated Denise did
not die immediately from that gunshot wound and was still breathing after.
Denise was extremely smart and ensured that her killer would be brought to justice.
Several of Denise's hairs were found shoved under the back passenger seat of the Camaro.
(23:23):
The hairs had been pulled out at the root and it appeared as though Denise had planted
them there to be found.
Denise also shoved her heart shaped ring from Nathan down into the backseat cushions, ensuring
investigators would know she had been in that car.
So imagine you're in this traumatic situation, but Denise is still smart enough that she
(23:46):
says at some point, hey, I've tried everything.
I've called 911.
I'm not getting out of this.
And unfortunately, there was probably a point where Denise knew that she wasn't going home
that day.
And so she wanted to ensure that Michael would be brought to justice so that this wouldn't
happen to anyone else.
So she planted her own DNA in that car and her own ring to make sure that people knew
(24:12):
she was in that car.
Wow.
I mean, not only did she have her wits about her to make that 911 call, but then to plant
evidence kind of conceding that I'm probably not going to make this through here.
I'm not going to make it through this.
That speaks volumes about the character and just the will that Denise had to continue
going until she just couldn't go anymore.
(24:35):
It's a really super sad set of circumstances, but I'm glad she did what she did because
if he had not been caught, you're right.
He probably would have done this again and again.
Yeah.
She is a fighter.
She fought and got out of his car at one point.
She had defensive wounds.
She fought him the whole way and unfortunately it ended the way that it did.
(24:57):
But Michael Lee King was found guilty on all charges on December 4th of 2009.
He was sentenced to death.
Michael attempted to appeal the court's decision in 2016, but his sentence was upheld.
He is currently incarcerated at the Union Correctional Institution in Florida and an
execution date has not been set.
After Denise's murder, Nathan established the Denise Amber Lee Foundation.
(25:21):
The foundation is devoted to ensuring 911 dispatchers receive improved training and
handling emergency calls.
Not long after Nathan established the foundation, the Florida legislature unanimously passed
the Denise Amber Lee Act.
This act requires 911 dispatchers to undergo 232 hours of 911 operator training.
(25:42):
Wow.
I love that.
I love when you see homicide survivors find something, a flaw in the system or something
to focus on to help make sure that this doesn't happen again.
And that's exactly what Nathan did.
So kudos to Nathan.
Since Denise's death, Nathan has continued to push for better training for 911 dispatchers.
(26:05):
Nathan wants to ensure no other family has to endure what his family has.
Nathan travels the nation to speak at 911 conferences in an effort to bring awareness
for the need to establish uniform training for dispatchers.
911 failed Denise that day and her family wants to make sure that it doesn't ever happen
again.
Nathan did receive a settlement from the Charlotte County 911 department in 2012 for $1.25 million.
(26:29):
Nathan purchased a home back in Inglewood where he and Denise had met and that's where
they were from.
They had only moved from Inglewood to Northport because the cost of living in Northport was
less and he wanted Denise to be able to stay home with their sons.
So after this happened, he took his sons and purchased a home in Inglewood and moved there.
(26:53):
He now lives there with his new wife.
Nathan and his new wife have seven children between the two of them.
Wow, that's quite the family.
Yeah.
Nathan is quoted as saying the following about his sons in the wake of Denise's death.
They've got part of Denise in them and that's the most comforting thing I can think about.
We've posted the link to the Denise Amber Lee Foundation on our website.
(27:17):
You can click on the link to donate to this important cause.
Well, Aria, thank you for, I've not even heard about this case.
So thank you for bringing this one to our attention.
I know it's a solved case, but it's still super important because the Denise Amber Lee
Foundation means so much to Nathan.
It means so much to the rest of law enforcement and it means so much to people to make sure
(27:37):
that you're getting good quality law enforcement responses.
And so thank you for bringing that to our attention and please go visit our website
at mysteriesandmimosas.net.
Find the episode tab.
It's under season two and you can find a link inside Denise Amber Lee's episode page where
you can donate to the Denise Amber Lee Foundation.
(27:58):
Thank you for listening to today's episode and don't forget to like, subscribe and give
us a five star rating.
Everything you do to get the word out there about our podcast helps us.
Yeah, it helps us out tremendously.
So thank you for doing that.
In the meantime, let's raise our glasses and toast to the Denise Amber Lee Foundation and
(28:19):
to Nathan and Denise.
Cheers.
Cheers.
Welcome to Mysteries and Mimosa's where we uncover the unknown.
(00:13):
I'm Max and alongside me is my co-host, the ever insightful Aria.
Hi everyone.
Hi Aria, we're thrilled to have you with us today as we get into another episode.
But before we begin, don't forget to like, subscribe and follow us on your favorite podcast
platform or YouTube channel.
Stay updated with our latest episode and exclusive content.
(00:36):
Visit our website at mysteriesandmimosas.net for more in-depth articles and additional
insights.
Also connect with us on social media to join the conversation and share your own theories
and discoveries.
And I just have to give a shout out to Max.
He has been working really hard on updating our website.
So please take a minute and go visit.
(00:57):
It looks great.
Oh wow, now a lot of pressure.
I better have this updated before this is released.
Yes.
It will be.
Okay.
Head on over and check it out.
And I did receive some feedback.
I think listener Bill may just be old because he said, I can't find the episode.
Head on over to the main page mysteriesandmimosas.net.
(01:17):
Up top, you'll see a banner that says episodes.
You'll see season one, you'll see season two.
We are in season two right now.
When you click season two, just look for the person that you want to explore.
And if you're new to listening with us, you can start in season one.
You could start in season one.
(01:37):
That's true.
You can start anywhere.
Yeah.
You can finish anywhere.
You can stop anytime.
There's no rules here.
No, no pressure.
Nope.
All right.
All right.
So each week we kick off our Thursday episode by diving into a bit of nostalgia and historical
fun.
We were focusing on the year 2008.
Max is in the hot seat again this week.
(01:58):
So let's see how well he remembers the moments that shaped 2008.
And just so everyone knows, I'm in the hot seat because Aria, I think she cheated, but
she did get a hundred percent.
So I will stay in the hot seat until I'm able to get 100% of the trivia questions right.
I think we need to put some parameters on this because I feel like you probably have
like 18 questions, which makes it nearly impossible.
(02:20):
No, I don't.
I don't, but I don't like your accusatory tone of that.
I cheated.
It's not an accusation.
It's just a suspicion.
Hmm.
There's a difference.
Well, I don't like it.
Look it up.
Don't like it.
Okay.
All right.
Are you ready for question number one?
I'm born ready.
Which film won the Academy Award for best picture in 2008?
(02:41):
Oh man.
I don't really follow films.
I don't follow movies and I don't even remember what was popular in 2008.
Can you give me a hint?
Who's the actor?
Who's the main actor?
I think it's Hillary Swank.
I think.
Wow.
Maybe I don't know.
Here we go again.
(03:02):
You don't know anything about your own trivia questions.
That's okay.
What does it start with?
No, not you're mean.
What's the genre?
I don't know.
I've never seen it.
Is it an action movie?
I've never seen it.
Have I ever seen it?
I don't think so.
Do you think I'll know this?
I don't know.
Well, you know, going back to 2008, I know where I was.
I know what I was doing.
(03:22):
I've never seen it, but was it Slumdog Millionaire?
It was.
How did you know?
I didn't think you had ever even seen that movie.
No, I haven't.
It's just a wild guess.
Huh.
Seems suspicious.
All right.
Question number two.
Which social media platform was launched in 2008 and quickly gained popularity?
(03:45):
Does it still have the same name today?
Yes.
Do I fail at updating this?
I'm not giving you any more hints.
Is it Discord?
No, it's not.
Dang it.
Instagram.
Oh, really?
Yeah.
I thought maybe Instagram was a little bit older.
Okay.
I was trying to think outside the box.
Failure number one.
All right.
(04:06):
Question number three.
Which American swimmer won a record eight gold medals at the 2008?
Michael Phelps.
Oh, yeah.
It is.
Good job.
Thanks.
All right.
Then we have one last question.
Are you ready?
I'm ready.
What was the name of the financial crisis that began in 2008?
Oh, that was the housing crisis.
(04:28):
Nope.
The global financial crisis, also known as the Great Recession.
The Great Recession.
Well, yeah, but it led to the financial crisis for housing.
No, everyone knows that as the Great Recession.
I mean, we're not going to talk about what it led to, what led to it.
It was called the Great Recession.
I feel like you cheated a little bit on question number one.
(04:51):
So no, you don't get it.
Why would you think I cheated on question number one?
Because you literally have never watched that movie.
No, but-
And I put the questions and the answers this week, I put them in the Google document and
I said, don't go to the bottom and look at the answers before.
(05:12):
And I think you did.
I do think you did.
Don't you think if I would have cheated on question one, don't you think I would have
got 100% across the board?
No, because then it would have been way too obvious and you didn't remember them all.
You just happened to remember that one.
I rest my case.
I think there was cheating, but even if there wasn't, you still lost anyways.
(05:33):
Listen, if I was going to cheat, which I wouldn't, I would never do that.
But if I were going to cheat, I'd have got 100%.
So that makes me wonder when I do get 100%, if you'll even validate it.
Well, I won't make the mistake of putting the questions and answers in the same document
that you have access to next time.
And then there will be no question.
(05:54):
Okay.
You know, you know, this is all in good fun, Max.
I don't really think you cheated.
Moving on.
Do you have today's mimosa recipe?
Today's mimosa recipe is an easy one.
It's pineapple mint mimosa.
This recipe includes one cup of pineapple juice, fresh mint leaves, and your favorite
champagne or sparkling wine, and add a pineapple slice for a garnish.
(06:16):
It's super easy.
All you have to do is crush up the mint leaves to get that flavor out there and mix it with
the pineapple juice in a separate container.
Add it to your favorite cocktail glass.
And if you want to drink in style, you'll create this masterpiece using some amazing
cocktail glasses from Dragon Glassware.
If you haven't picked up your set, head over to dragonglassware.com.
Enter our promo code mysteries and mimosas podcast and Dragon Glassware will give you
(06:40):
a generous discount of 10% off your entire order.
Not to mention every purchase helps us continue to bring you episode week after week.
So what do you have for us today?
Today?
Besides a horrible trivia segment.
Horrible trivia segment.
That's debatable.
Continue.
What do you got?
What do you got for us today?
(07:00):
Today's case is the case of Denise Amber Lee.
Denise Amber Lee was born on August 6th, 1986 in Inglewood, Florida.
Denise was quiet and introverted.
She did well in school and was a self-described bookworm.
In her senior year of high school, Denise met Nathan Lee.
Nathan was very social and good at sports.
(07:21):
Denise asked Nathan out on their first date, which is when their love story began.
Nathan bought Denise a $40 heart-shaped ring for their first Valentine's Day together.
And Denise treasured that ring and wore it every day after that.
I love that.
Me too.
I love that story.
The two fell in love and were married in 2005.
(07:42):
Denise and Nathan then started their own family and had two little boys, Adam and Noah.
Nathan was a hard worker and worked multiple jobs to provide for his family and ensure
that Denise could stay home and care for their boys.
January 17th, 2008 started like any other day for the Lee family.
(08:03):
Nathan left for work early that morning, leaving Denise and their boys in their rented home
in North Port, Florida.
During his lunch break around 11.09 a.m., Nathan called Denise and chatted.
During the conversation, Denise mentioned that the house felt stuffy, so Nathan told
her to open the windows and let in some fresh air.
Denise told Nathan she had already done so.
(08:26):
At 3 p.m., Nathan called Denise to let her know he was on his way home from work.
Oddly though, Denise didn't answer.
During his 25-minute drive home from work, Nathan tried calling Denise eight more times
with no answer.
So he was really worried.
Yeah.
It sounds like it was pretty typical for him to call her on his lunch break and then when
he was on his way home and not typical for her to not answer, especially after he's called
(08:50):
nine times.
When Nathan arrived home, he noticed the windows were all closed, even though Denise had told
him she had opened them earlier.
Nathan went inside and saw Denise's keys and cell phone inside the house, but he couldn't
find Denise.
Nathan found Adam and Noah together in one crib.
And remind me, how old was Adam and Noah at this time?
(09:13):
Noah was two and Adam was six months old.
Oh, okay.
So it's not weird for them to be in the crib.
They're young.
Yeah.
So it's not sure that they were in one crib together or not.
Probably.
So Nathan kept looking for Denise, but once he saw that the windows were closed but not
locked, he knew for sure that something was wrong because Denise would have never shut
(09:36):
the windows and not locked them as well.
So Nathan immediately called 911 to report Denise missing.
As soon as Nathan hung up the phone with 911, he called Denise's dad, Rick Goff.
Rick was a detective for the Charlotte County Sheriff's Office.
Fortunately, due to Rick's connections, Denise's case was taken seriously immediately and a
(09:57):
large scale search was started right away.
Wow.
That's scary to come home and not know where your wife is.
Yeah, it is.
And your boys are home alone.
That's the worst part.
He knows something's not right.
She's not going to leave them.
But yeah, her keys and her phone and everything are there.
So yeah, that's scary.
But fortunately in this case, you know, her dad is a detective, so that those connections
(10:22):
help move the case in the right direction.
Sure.
Police began canvassing the neighborhood to see if anyone witnessed anything unusual that
day.
One neighbor, Jennifer Eckert, reported that she saw a white male driving a green Camaro
circling the neighborhood multiple times around 2 30 that afternoon.
(10:43):
Jennifer said she saw the vehicle in the Lee's driveway, but assumed the driver was just
lost and unfamiliar with the area.
When Jennifer checked again 10 minutes later, the vehicle was gone.
Police quickly alerted law enforcement to be on the lookout for the green Camaro and
the search for Denise continued.
Okay, so they alerted law enforcement to be on the lookout for the green Camaro.
(11:03):
So basically what that is, is a BOLO.
And that just goes from one dispatch to multiple agencies that are surrounding the immediate
area so that more than just the investigating agency is looking for them.
So they do that.
And then at 614 that evening, a 911 call was actually received from Denise herself.
(11:25):
Denise had managed to use her captor's cell phone to call for help.
Denise relate information to dispatch about her name, address, the fact she had been taken
against her will by a stranger, and the make and color of her captor's car.
Denise was pretending to have a conversation with her kidnapper while she was relaying
this information to dispatch.
(11:46):
So she was doing it covertly, obviously.
He didn't know that she had his phone and had dialed 911.
So she was trying to relay this information at this, well, at the same time, you know,
not alerting him that she was talking to someone else.
So she's essentially relaying information to dispatch, acting as though she's having
(12:06):
a conversation with her captor by just saying things out loud to help alert the police about
her important information to lead to her recovery.
Yeah, exactly.
She's very smart.
And so she's using this opportunity to relay key details to dispatch.
Denise pleaded for her kidnapper to let her go during this call.
(12:30):
Denise talked about her boys and how badly she wanted to go see her family.
Denise reportedly used the word please 17 times, pleading for her kidnapper to let her
go.
Seven minutes into that phone call, her captor realized his phone was missing and the call
abruptly ended.
And that's super scary.
I would hate to have to be the dispatcher listening to that.
(12:50):
I was just going to say, can you imagine being in the situation where you're listening to
that and just trying your hardest to figure out what's going on and get the information
out there and trying to find her?
And on top of that, poor Denise, how terrifying of a situation that is.
And she's so smart to be thinking ahead that way.
Yeah, absolutely.
And we talk about trauma when police see things, they're traumatized, when citizens see things,
(13:15):
they're traumatized.
But a lot of times we forget about the dispatchers who have to take those emotional calls.
And really, they're essentially helpless.
They're just the lifeline to get help to the person who calls in.
I would imagine every dispatcher wishes they could just be there to give the help immediately,
but they just can't.
So this call taker had to be extremely traumatized from this call.
(13:36):
I always say that.
I could never be a dispatcher.
It takes a very special person to do that job.
And I just I couldn't do it because you're right.
I would not be able to be sitting in a dispatch center, hearing all of these things, hearing
these horrible things happening and not being there to see and to be able to help.
I couldn't do it.
(13:56):
So kudos to everyone out there who is a 911 dispatcher without you.
I mean, we couldn't or police couldn't do their job.
So unfortunately, the phone that Denise was using to call 911 was a burner phone.
So police were unable to track an exact location of where that call was coming from.
Yeah.
(14:17):
And if you don't know what a burner phone is, that's essentially one of those pay to
talk phones that you can get just at 7-Eleven.
And there's no real verification behind, you know, setting that up.
You could just basically pay prepay for a phone and have it activated and use it.
And a lot of times, criminals use these burner phones to commit further crimes.
But they're not completely untraceable either.
(14:38):
Yeah.
So even though it was a burner phone and they couldn't track her exact location, police
were able to find out who the phone belonged to.
And that was 36 year old Michael Lee King.
Michael Lee King was a recently divorced father of one.
Michael was unemployed and his home was about to be foreclosed on.
(14:58):
Michael lived near the Lees, but they didn't know him.
Michael reportedly saw Denise outside of her home, cutting her two year old son's hair
and decided to kidnap her that day.
So it sounds like it was just an opportunity, right?
The neighbor reported that she saw him driving around the neighborhood multiple times.
He was looking for his opportunity.
And when he saw Denise out on her porch, cutting her son's hair, that was his opportunity.
(15:23):
Oh, I imagine because he's circling, he probably watched her several times and kept circling
and seeing if she's still out there.
And you're right.
It was a crime of opportunity.
After Michael kidnapped Denise, he took her to his home where he bound her with duct tape
and repeatedly raped her.
Michael then took Denise, who was bound and laying on the rear floor of the car, to his
(15:44):
cousin Harold's home, where he asked to borrow a shovel, a can of gas, and a flashlight.
It was here where Denise managed to free herself and jump out of the car.
Denise yelled for Harold to call 911.
Harold asked Michael what was going on as Michael fought with Denise and forced her
back into the car.
It was during this struggle that Denise was able to take Michael's burner phone and make
(16:06):
that secret call to 911.
Wow.
I'm just curious, why didn't Harold do something more?
I mean, I don't care who it is.
If somebody shows up to my house, whether it's a best friend, brother, cousin, it doesn't
matter who it is.
If I see a girl get out of his car and they're screaming for help, I'm not just going to
be like, hey, Michael, what's going on?
(16:27):
I mean, I'd be probably helping that person, wouldn't you think?
You would think so.
After Michael left, Harold went inside and told his 17-year-old daughter Sabrina what
had happened.
At 6.23 PM, Sabrina placed the third call to 911 to report the incident.
So Harold, I'm not sure if he was ever going to report it besides telling his daughter,
(16:48):
but she went ahead and did the right thing and called 911.
Seven minutes later, at 6.30 PM, a fourth 911 call was received from a woman by the
name of Jane Kowalski.
Jane reported that she thought she was witnessing a child abduction in progress.
Jane said she was stopped next to a green Camaro at a stoplight and observed a white
male driving the car.
(17:09):
The man was driving with one hand and using his other hand to hold something down in the
back seat.
Jane said she could hear what sounded like a child screaming and saw a hand banging on
the rear passenger window.
Jane attempted to follow the vehicle to get the license plate, but the driver was able
to evade her and get away.
The call lasted more than nine minutes, with Jane relaying cross streets and locations
(17:32):
to the dispatcher.
At 9.15 PM, an observant police officer spotted a green Camaro matching the description of
that bolo that was sent out earlier that day.
The police officer stopped the Camaro and as he walked up, he observed a muddy shovel
laying in the back seat.
He noticed that the driver, identified as Michael Lee King, was soaking wet from the
(17:52):
waist down and his shoes were covered in mud.
The burner phone that Denise used to call 911 was found in his pocket.
Michael had removed both the battery as well as the SIM card from the phone.
Michael was arrested on the spot.
Wow.
So there's a lot to process here.
In the battery and the SIM card, he's obviously trying to evade detection.
(18:15):
He knows that the 911 call was placed, probably because he looked at his call log and saw
that she called 911.
And so in order to try to stop anybody from tracking that phone, he's taken the SIM card
out so it no longer talks to the towers.
He's taken the battery out just in case it connects to a wifi network somewhere.
He's gone through great lengths to stop law enforcement from finding him.
(18:36):
Two days later, on January 19th, Denise's naked body was found in a shallow grave in
a muddy field.
Denise had been shot in the head.
The field where Denise's body was found was only five miles from where Jane saw the Camaro
and called 911.
The following day, Jane saw the story on the news and recognized a photo of Michael as
(18:57):
the same man she had seen driving the green Camaro.
Jane called the police to see if they needed any further information from her.
Jane was shocked though when the police had no idea who she was or anything about the
911 call she had placed back on January 17th.
Yikes, that's sad.
Yeah.
It turned out that the dispatcher never sent officers out to investigate the incident and
(19:22):
even worse, had never even logged the call.
The call taker claimed she yelled out to two other dispatchers to dispatch an officer.
The two dispatchers blamed shift change in the busy dispatch center for not sending anyone
out.
The dispatchers were subsequently suspended without pay.
And when the sheriff was asked why they were not fired for their gross negligence, he claimed
(19:43):
it was a missed opportunity.
Sadly, it was later reported that a deputy was on the road Jane saw Michael turn down
before she lost him.
Okay, I call that more than a missed opportunity.
I mean, you know, I know that they have a lot going on in dispatch centers.
Sometimes they're overwhelmed with a tremendous amount of call volume.
(20:04):
But when you have somebody saying, hey, there's a kidnapping in progress, that is a priority
one call you send officers to that immediately code three, which means emergent lights and
sirens, you send everybody that's available to try to figure this out because the last
thing you want is the outcome that we have here.
Right.
I mean, on top of that, so say it is busy in the dispatch center.
(20:28):
You're taking a call like that, that's not something you're going to ever forget, let
alone forget in that same shift.
I mean, personally, again, I'm not a dispatcher, but I would think if I'm taking a call like
that, and when that call is ended, do you not turn to the other dispatchers and say,
that was crazy?
Like, who's responding to that?
Did you send somebody out there?
What's going on with it?
(20:48):
Did they find the car?
Like, how are you not following up on that?
It makes zero sense to me.
And it's so disappointing.
And the worst part for Denise's dad, Rick, is that the same department responsible for
the mishandling of the 911 call was the same department that he worked for.
And he had worked there for 25 years.
(21:09):
This outcome could be completely different.
Had that dispatcher done their job appropriately, they would have dispatched the officer who
was in the area at that time.
They would have got Michael stopped.
They would have been able to save her.
And yet here we are.
Yeah, absolutely.
For what reason?
No good reason.
There's no, it's inexcusable.
Yeah, it's devastating.
And it has to just, I mean, if we have any dispatchers listening, it has to frustrate
(21:32):
you beyond belief because the dispatchers I know would never let anything like that
happen.
They get overwhelmed from time to time, but typically they do this job for a specific
reason and that's to help.
And I'm sorry, but this dispatcher failed every step of the way.
So Michael pled not guilty to the charges of first degree murder, sexual battery, and
(21:55):
kidnapping.
Michael denied being involved and tried to claim that both he and Denise were kidnapped
and blindfolded.
However, the evidence against Michael was overwhelming.
There were several witnesses who testified in the trial, including Michael's own cousin
Harold.
Denise's DNA was found in Michael's home and the Camaro.
There was a combination of Michael's and Denise's DNA found on the duct tape that was used to
(22:19):
bind her and Denise's shorts were found in the woods near her grave and those contained
Michael's semen.
It sounds like they have an airtight case.
Yeah.
I mean, there were several witnesses, right?
We had several 911 calls that came into dispatch saying, Hey, I'm seeing this and they're describing
Michael and the vehicle he's driving.
(22:40):
So, and oh, by the way, now Harold steps up and does the right thing at trial.
Yeah.
So he did end up testifying.
So I do want to give a warning because this next bit of information is graphic.
The medical examiner reported that Denise had been brutally raped.
Denise had several bruises and defensive wounds on her body.
The medical examiner found that Denise had been shot at point blank range right above
(23:02):
her left eyebrow.
The worst part is there was blood found in Denise's lungs, which indicated Denise did
not die immediately from that gunshot wound and was still breathing after.
Denise was extremely smart and ensured that her killer would be brought to justice.
Several of Denise's hairs were found shoved under the back passenger seat of the Camaro.
(23:23):
The hairs had been pulled out at the root and it appeared as though Denise had planted
them there to be found.
Denise also shoved her heart shaped ring from Nathan down into the backseat cushions, ensuring
investigators would know she had been in that car.
So imagine you're in this traumatic situation, but Denise is still smart enough that she
(23:46):
says at some point, hey, I've tried everything.
I've called 911.
I'm not getting out of this.
And unfortunately, there was probably a point where Denise knew that she wasn't going home
that day.
And so she wanted to ensure that Michael would be brought to justice so that this wouldn't
happen to anyone else.
So she planted her own DNA in that car and her own ring to make sure that people knew
(24:12):
she was in that car.
Wow.
I mean, not only did she have her wits about her to make that 911 call, but then to plant
evidence kind of conceding that I'm probably not going to make this through here.
I'm not going to make it through this.
That speaks volumes about the character and just the will that Denise had to continue
going until she just couldn't go anymore.
(24:35):
It's a really super sad set of circumstances, but I'm glad she did what she did because
if he had not been caught, you're right.
He probably would have done this again and again.
Yeah.
She is a fighter.
She fought and got out of his car at one point.
She had defensive wounds.
She fought him the whole way and unfortunately it ended the way that it did.
(24:57):
But Michael Lee King was found guilty on all charges on December 4th of 2009.
He was sentenced to death.
Michael attempted to appeal the court's decision in 2016, but his sentence was upheld.
He is currently incarcerated at the Union Correctional Institution in Florida and an
execution date has not been set.
After Denise's murder, Nathan established the Denise Amber Lee Foundation.
(25:21):
The foundation is devoted to ensuring 911 dispatchers receive improved training and
handling emergency calls.
Not long after Nathan established the foundation, the Florida legislature unanimously passed
the Denise Amber Lee Act.
This act requires 911 dispatchers to undergo 232 hours of 911 operator training.
(25:42):
Wow.
I love that.
I love when you see homicide survivors find something, a flaw in the system or something
to focus on to help make sure that this doesn't happen again.
And that's exactly what Nathan did.
So kudos to Nathan.
Since Denise's death, Nathan has continued to push for better training for 911 dispatchers.
(26:05):
Nathan wants to ensure no other family has to endure what his family has.
Nathan travels the nation to speak at 911 conferences in an effort to bring awareness
for the need to establish uniform training for dispatchers.
911 failed Denise that day and her family wants to make sure that it doesn't ever happen
again.
Nathan did receive a settlement from the Charlotte County 911 department in 2012 for $1.25 million.
(26:29):
Nathan purchased a home back in Inglewood where he and Denise had met and that's where
they were from.
They had only moved from Inglewood to Northport because the cost of living in Northport was
less and he wanted Denise to be able to stay home with their sons.
So after this happened, he took his sons and purchased a home in Inglewood and moved there.
(26:53):
He now lives there with his new wife.
Nathan and his new wife have seven children between the two of them.
Wow, that's quite the family.
Yeah.
Nathan is quoted as saying the following about his sons in the wake of Denise's death.
They've got part of Denise in them and that's the most comforting thing I can think about.
We've posted the link to the Denise Amber Lee Foundation on our website.
(27:17):
You can click on the link to donate to this important cause.
Well, Aria, thank you for, I've not even heard about this case.
So thank you for bringing this one to our attention.
I know it's a solved case, but it's still super important because the Denise Amber Lee
Foundation means so much to Nathan.
It means so much to the rest of law enforcement and it means so much to people to make sure
(27:37):
that you're getting good quality law enforcement responses.
And so thank you for bringing that to our attention and please go visit our website
at mysteriesandmimosas.net.
Find the episode tab.
It's under season two and you can find a link inside Denise Amber Lee's episode page where
you can donate to the Denise Amber Lee Foundation.
(27:58):
Thank you for listening to today's episode and don't forget to like, subscribe and give
us a five star rating.
Everything you do to get the word out there about our podcast helps us.
Yeah, it helps us out tremendously.
So thank you for doing that.
In the meantime, let's raise our glasses and toast to the Denise Amber Lee Foundation and
(28:19):
to Nathan and Denise.
Cheers.
Cheers.
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