A 21-year-old Florida mother was taking care of her two sons when she suddenly vanished from their home in 2008. Denise Amber Lee’s story ended in tragedy, but her quick-thinking proved vital in helping police catch the man who killed her.
That Jan. 17, Denise’s husband, Nathan Lee, returned to their North Port home after work around 3:30 p.m. to find their children Noah and Adam, who were 2 years old and six months old at the time, alone and placed in the same crib.
Unable to locate Denise, Nathan dialed 911 to report her missing. The call went to the Sarasota County 911 call center, triggering a massive search.
A new “20/20” episode, “Life on the Line” airing Friday, Oct. 10, at 9 p.m. ET on ABC and streaming the next day on Hulu.
You can also get more behind-the-scenes of each week’s episode by listening to “20/20: The After Show” weekly series right on your 20/20 podcast feed on Mondays, hosted by “20/20” co-anchor Deborah Roberts.
The search for Denise quickly kicked into high gear. Denise’s father, Rick Goff, was a sergeant with the nearby Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office and joined in the effort to find her.
An early clue came when a neighbor said she saw an unusual green Camaro pull into the Lees’ driveway, only one hour before Nathan arrived home.
However, the search took a dark turn when local police got another 911 call — from Denise herself, bravely placed using her abductor’s cell phone. She secretly communicated with the 911 operator while speaking to her captor.
“Please let me go. Please let me go. I just want to see my family again,” Denise is heard saying on the recorded call heard in Friday’s episode of “20/20.” “My name is Denise. I’m married to a beautiful husband and I just want to see my kids again.”
In an exclusive new interview with “20/20” co-anchor Deborah Roberts, Chris Morales, the lead detective on the case, said that this call from Denise confirmed their fears.
“When that 911 call came in, we absolutely knew that she was abducted,” Morales said.
Investigators traced the number to an unemployed plumber, Michael King, who was going through foreclosure and owned a green Camaro. He had no relation to her at all, but when police searched King’s house, they found a hair tie belonging to Denise and duct tape with long brown hair stuck to it which authorities suspected came from Denise.
Another call from an eyewitness offered crucial real-time details about the abduction.
Jane Kowalski, who was driving down a highway in the area that evening, called 911 to report seeing a Camaro with a person that she thought was a child screaming and banging on the window in the back seat.
“I looked over and I see the guy, it’s clear as day,” Kowalski said in the call. “There’s the little window in the back and the hand’s coming up and just hitting that window.”
The call was routed to Charlotte County 911 dispatch, which is distinct from the neighboring Sarasota County 911 dispatch team where Denise’s 911 call was received.
Kowalski’s call was not immediately dispatched to the police searching for Denise. The information from the call was initially written on a piece a paper instead of being entered into the system, according to the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office, which investigated the incident.
“It was a major screw-up. When I say major, I mean it could have saved her life,” Goff, Denise’s father, told “20/20.”
The Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office maintained that dispatching the call properly would not have made a difference in locating Denise.
“The assumption is that Charlotte County screwed up and could have saved this girl’s life,” Charlotte County Sheriff John Davenport said at a news conference in 2008. “I’m telling you that until the facts come out here, that’s the wrong assumption to make.”
The internal investigation into the call found that procedure had been violated by the call not being dispatched immediately, and two dispatchers associated with the call were temporarily suspended, given remedial training and six months of probation.
Approximately five hours after Denise was reported missing, police found King when the Florida Highway Patrol pulled him over in the green Camaro. He was soaking wet and in possession of a gas can and a dirty shovel. A heart-shaped ring belonging to Denise was also eventually found in King’s car.
Two days later, police found Denise’s body in nearby woods. She had been sexually assaulted, shot and buried in a grave four feet deep.
“I was a big baby when that happened, I can tell you. Being kicked in the groin or something because it’s like, I’m not so tough after that. She was my firstborn baby girl,” Goff said.
King was then charged with murder in the first degree, kidnapping, and sexual battery. His defense team argued he was innocent, pointing to the fact that the murder weapon was never recovered.
Meanwhile, prosecutors presented forensic evidence that linked King to Denise from her hair and personal belongings that were found in his home and Camaro.
King was convicted by a jury in less than two hours on all counts and sentenced to death in September 2009.
Denise’s family has since dedicated their lives to bringing awareness to the 911 system.
Her sister Amanda became a 911 dispatcher and has remained in the industry. Nathan started the Denise Amber Lee Foundation and travels all over the country sharing Denise’s story with 911 emergency workers, hoping to prevent what happened in Denise’s case from ever happening again.
In her name, Denise’s family also helped pass the Denise Amber Lee Act, establishing new statewide standards for 911 operator and dispatcher training that requires them to undergo more than 200 hours of training.
Denise’s now-teenage children, Noah and Adam, also shared their mother’s story with ABC News’ Roberts as part of their first television interview in this week’s “20/20,” as a way to honor her life.
“We’re a part of her, and I feel like people hearing from us can see how important she was, how amazing she was, and see how big of a hole that is left because she’s not here,” Adam said.
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