A Florida jury unanimously recommended Sept. 4 that Michael Lee King, a 1990 Brandon High School graduate, be sentenced to death.
King, 38, was convicted by the same jury on Aug. 28 of the murder, rape and kidnapping of Denise Amber Lee. Judge Deno Economou will ultimately decide whether King receives the death penalty or life in prison.
Prosecutor Lon Arend could not be reached for comment and defense attorney Carolyn Schlemmer declined to comment.
According to North Port Police Department reports, at about 3:29 p.m., Jan. 17, 2008, officers responded to the Lee home on the report of a missing person. Nathaniel Lee had arrived home at 3:20 p.m. to find his wife gone and their two sons, a 2-year-old and a 6-month-old, unattended. Denise Lee’s purse, keys, cell phone and vehicle were still at the residence.
Three subsequent 9-1-1 calls were received? one at 6:14 p.m. from Denise Lee herself; a second at 6:23 p.m., from a woman who said her father just called her and told her that his cousin, King, had just stopped by in his Camaro and a woman who was tied up had gotten out of the car; and a third at 6:30 p.m. from a witness traveling southbound on U.S. Highway 41 who was at a traffic light when she said a Camaro pulled up on the left side of her vehicle. This third caller told 9-1-1 she heard screaming and saw the driver keep pushing someone down in between the backseat of the vehicle. She also observed a woman’s hand slapping the left passenger side window hard, as if trying to get out. As they approached the intersection of US 41 and Toledo Blade Boulevard, the Camaro suddenly changed lanes and turned onto the boulevard and was last seen traveling northbound on I-75. She later identified King as the driver and his Camaro as the vehicle.
At 9:16 p.m., a trooper spotted the green Camaro and arrested King, who was alone. A wet shovel was found in the backseat, as well as a ring belonging to Denise Lee.
On Jan. 19, her body was discovered buried in a rural area off of Toledo Blade Boulevard, close to the area where King was found by the trooper. Cause of death was a gunshot wound to her head.
King’s trial began Aug. 24. Four days later, after the prosecution had presented evidence including blood, semen, hair, and duct tape collected from King’s green Camaro and his home; a shell casing found in the woods that experts linked to King’s gun; and 9-1-1 tapes in which Denise Lee is heard begging for her life, the jury deliberated just two-and-a-half hours before finding King guilty.
According to news reports, during the penalty phase defense attorneys cited a low IQ (in the 70s) and a sledding accident when he was 6-years-old, as reasons why King should not be executed. King’s family members have also pleaded for his life to be spared, particularly so his 12-year-old son is not left without a father.