Man convicted in 2008 Denise Amber Lee murder to be executed Tuesday night

Execution day for Denise Amber Lee's killer

Execution day has arrived for Denise Amber Lee's killer. FOX 13's Kellie Cowan has more on the long-awaited day for her family.

RAITFORD, Fla. - Nearly two decades after a North Port mom's murder, her killer will be put to death.

The state of Florida is set to execute Michael King for the 2008 kidnapping and murder of Denise Amber Lee, a young mother of two.

King’s final appeals were rejected by the U.S. Supreme Court, clearing the way for his execution by lethal injection, scheduled for 6 p.m. on Tuesday.

The backstory:

Investigators say Lee was abducted at gunpoint from her home while she was alone with her two young sons, who were just two-years and six-months-old at the time.

In the hours that followed, Lee made desperate efforts to save herself and alert others.

Authorities say she screamed for help to passing drivers, prompting multiple 911 calls from witnesses. At one point, she also managed to secretly use King’s cellphone to call 911 herself.

Despite those efforts, dispatchers failed to relay critical information to deputies in the field, who were reportedly just moments away from her location.

Lee was later found murdered.

Her husband, Nathan Lee, says she did everything she could — not only to survive, but to make sure her killer would be caught.

Investigators say Lee even left behind her wedding ring in King’s vehicle, where she had been tied up — a piece of evidence that helped build the case against him.

"I’m just really proud of her for making sure he didn’t get away with it… Denise basically prosecuted this case for me," Nathan Lee said. "Because of all the stuff she did, calling 911, leaving all the evidence. I’m just proud of her."

PREVIOUS: Denise Amber Lee’s husband continues legacy with convicted killer’s death set for next month

Big picture view:

Lee’s murder exposed major breakdowns in emergency response communications.

Despite multiple 911 calls — including one from Lee herself — key information was not properly shared with deputies searching for her.

The failures sparked widespread scrutiny and ultimately led to reform, thanks to her family's relentless advocacy.

In the years since her murder, Nathan Lee has traveled across the country sharing Denise's story with emergency dispatchers and advocating for better training.

What they're saying:

"I just wanted Denise to matter," he said. "I wanted Denise to be more than just the mother in North Port who was murdered… I wanted her to be the face of change because 911 wasn’t good enough, and we needed to make it better."

Those efforts helped lead to the creation of the Denise Amber Lee Act, which established standardized training, certification, and education requirements for 911 operators in Florida.

Nathan says he hopes their sons — now grown — understand the impact their mother had.

"I wanted Noah and Adam to look back on it and see how important their mom was."

Nearly two decades later, Denise Amber Lee’s story continues to shape how emergency calls are handled — in Florida and beyond.

Her family says their work is not done, and they remain committed to preventing the kind of failures that happened in 2008 from ever happening again.