Gov. Ron DeSantis on Friday signed the death warrant for a man convicted in the 2008 kidnap, rape and murder of a North Port woman that resulted in increased training for 911 operators across Florida.
According to court documents, unemployed plumber Michael King, 54, abducted Denise Amber Lee, 21, the mother of two and the daughter of a Charlotte County Sheriff sergeant from her home on Jan. 17, 2008. King took her to his house, duct-taped her wrists and raped her, and then put her in the backseat of his car before driving to his cousin’s house to borrow a flashlight, shovel, and gas can while she called out for help, prosecutors said.
From the back seat, Lee was able to get King’s cell phone and call 911 herself.
On a recording of the call, “Ms. Lee is heard crying and begging to be saved so that she could see her husband and children again,” the death warrant states.
At least three other people also called 911, including King’s cousin and another driver who heard Lee screaming from the back of King’s Camero and pounding on the window. No officers were sent to help, even though a massive search for Lee was already underway.
King later drove Lee to a remote area where he shot her in the face and buried her, prosecutors said. Her clothes were found nearby and his DNA was positively matched.
In 2012, the Florida Supreme Court upheld King’s murder conviction and death sentence, calling his acts “unquestionably cold and cruel.” The U.S. Supreme Court denied his petition for writ of certiorari the same year, and multiple appeals failed in the years since.
Barring further successful appeals, King will be the fourth person to be executed in Florida in 2026.
When is Michael L. King scheduled to be executed?
King is scheduled to be put to death by lethal injection starting at 6 p.m. ET on Tuesday, March 17 at Florida State Prison near Starke.
Who is Michael L. King?
Lee was reported missing from her North Port home after her husband, Nathan Lee, found the door locked, her keys, phone and purse still there, and their sons, ages 6 months and 2 years, left abandoned in a crib together, court documents show.
A neighbor reported seeing a green Camaro slowly driving up the street a few hours before that, finally pulling into Lee’s driveway. The neighbor reported the car gone within 15 minutes.
King showed up at the home of his cousin, Harold Muxlow, asking for a flashlight, a gas can, and a shovel to help get his lawnmower unstuck from his front yard. Muxlow provided them, but heard a female voice from the vehicle say, “Call the cops.”
King told Muxlow not to worry about it. As King was getting back in his car Lee jumped out of the passenger side door and fought with King for about 30 seconds as Muxlow watched from his driveway, police records state. King got her back in the car and drove away.
Muxlow told his daughter and then drove to King’s house. After he failed to see a stuck lawnmower, he made an anonymous call to 911 with his concerns and a description of the car. His daughter also called police.
In the car, Lee managed to get King’s phone and call 911 herself from the backseat, giving her name. She could be heard pleading for her life before the call was terminated.
Jane Kowalski was at a traffic light when a green Camaro pulled up. She said she heard screaming from inside that sounded, “Horrific, terrified. I’ve never ever heard anything like that in my life.” Kowalski testified that she saw the driver reach back to shove someone down, and then saw a hand come up to beat on the window. When the light changed she held back to get the license plate but the driver, whom she later identified as King, waited for her to go first.
Kowalski called 911, provided a description and stayed on the phone for several minutes updating officials on the car’s location. However, Kowalski called 911 from just inside the Charlotte County line and her call was handled by the Charlotte County 911 center. For some reason, the call was not patched through to the North Port police, who were directing the search for Lee just blocks away.
King was arrested about three hours later, with soaking wet pants covered with mud and no one else in the car. Lee was nowhere to be found.
Lee’s body was found two days later in a shallow grave six miles from her home. Blood, semen, hair, and duct tape were collected from King’s green Camaro and his home and experts linked a shell casing found in the woods to King’s gun.
King pleaded not guilty but a jury convicted him of first-degree murder, involuntary sexual battery, and kidnapping.
Murder case results in 911 training legislation
At the time, 911 centers in Florida each set their own training standards, which meant that some call takers might train for months while others could be directing emergency response within days of being hired.
In 2010, Florida legislators approved the “Denise Amber Lee Act,” which in part required the Department of Health to establish criteria for the certification of 911 emergency dispatchers.
The law, signed by then-Gov. Charlie Crist, also required applicants for certification or recertification as a 911 emergency dispatcher to complete a training program of not less than 208 hours.
King is 4th death warrant in busy 2026 year
DeSantis appears to be maintaining the same rapid pace he set for state executions last year, when Florida put four times the number of inmates to death as any other state in the country. The record-breaking 19 death warrants in 2025 nearly doubled the previous modern era record for Florida executions in one year, which was eight in both 1984 and 2014.
The first person executed in Florida this year was Ronald Heath, sentenced for shooting, fatally stabbing, and robbing traveling salesman Michael Sheridan in the Gainesville woods in 1989. He was executed by lethal injection on Tuesday, Feb. 10. There are two more executions already scheduled before King.
Who is the next person to be executed in Florida?
Melvin Trotter, 65, of Manatee County received the death sentence for strangling and fatally stabbing 70-year-old Virgie Langford in her Palmetto convenience store in 1986 during a robbery. He is scheduled to be put to death on Feb. 24.
Billy L. Kearse, 53, confessed to shooting Fort Pierce Police Officer Danny Parrish with his own service weapon during a 1991 traffic stop. His execution is scheduled for Tuesday, March 3.
How many people are on Florida’s death row?
As of Feb. 16, there are 252 people on death row in Florida. In January, Marcelle Jerrill Waldon was sentenced to die for the 2020 murders of a former Lakeland city commissioner and her husband in their Lakeland home.
The stats break down to 251 men (154 White, 86 Black, 10 other) and one Black woman.
How many death row inmates has Florida executed?
From 1924 until May 1964, the state of Florida executed 196 people. There were no executions from May 1964 until May 1976.
In 1972, the United States Supreme Court struck down the death penalty, but it was reinstated in 1976. Florida has carried out 126 executions since then.
C. A. Bridges is a journalist for the USA TODAY Network-Florida’s service journalism Connect team. You can get all of Florida’s best content directly in your inbox each weekday day by signing up for the free newsletter, Florida TODAY.
(This story was updated because an earlier version included an inaccuracy.)
This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Sarasota killer to be 4th Florida execution of 2026. Who is Michael King?
Reporting by C. A. Bridges, USA TODAY NETWORK – Florida / Sarasota Herald-Tribune
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