| Title | : | A Killers Touch |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | - |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Kindle Edition |
| Number of Pages | : | 383 |
| Publication | : | First published January 1, 2011 |
Denise Amber Lee was a 21-year-old happily married mother of two little boys. She had her whole life ahead of her. . .until an intruder broke into her Florida home. Within a few short hours she was savagely terrorized, murdered, and buried naked in a shallow grave near a desolate swamp.
A DEPRAVED KILLER . . .
Michael King, a 38-year-old out-of-work plumber, was a ticking time bomb. For years, neighbors called the police on King, complaining that, among other things, he'd thrown battery acid in their pool and slashed their tires. Denise's fate was far worse. In a horrifying act of cruelty, King bound her with duct tape, raped her repeatedly, then shot her dead.
A TRAGIC FAILURE. . .
Incredibly, Denise managed to call 911 twice during her abduction. Eyewitnesses and her distraught husband also called, but a slow, inefficient system tragically failed her. As a result, Florida passed the Denise Lee Law, setting voluntary standards for 911 systems. King was sentenced to death. But for Denise and her loving family, it was too late.
Includes 16 Pages of Shocking Photos
A Killers Touch Reviews
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A particularly sad story when you realise that if not for the monumental stuff-ups of the 911 Emergency staff, Denise might still be alive. So hard for her family.
The last half of the book deals at length with the trial, which I found particularly interesting. Except for Dr Wu and his PET scans, which the author covered in a previous book that I read. Dr Wu seems to have a similar script for both cases. And no doubt many others?!
Well researched and well written. I "enjoyed" it. -
Wow.......the utter futility of Denise's death will stay with me...so horribly sad. It made harrowing reading to learn all she did to ensure this shithead was caught yet because she was let down by the system she still ended up dead. I'm amazed she kept her composure enough to leave the clues she did and to make THAT phonecall and to remain lucid enough to share clues with the 911 operator. I salute Jan too, who clearly did her very best to ensure the person she encountered was given assistance. She'll forever live with the fact that the people she was asking for help weren't on the ball enough to get help there in time.
Then the DMV and their practices also managed to work against her in that they didn't update records for 90 days !! A fat lot of good that was.
You may think we're referring to a murder in the 80s but this was in the 21ST CENTURY with CCTV and immediate communications/cross-referencing available and still the system fell down. The author wrote it in such a way you still hoped there might be a different ending, which was clever. It was upsetting, too.
It was hard wondering what on earth made him pick Denise or where he encountered her, too. He clearly knew who she was and where she lived but he didn't talk. A pity they can't torture it out of him. What is worrying is that people don't usually do this once and they tend to progress in their criminality yet King didn't appear to have a record, unless something crops up in the future. I wondered during the trial about the tree that was mentioned but the question was struck from the record, too. There's still a gun out there somewhere.
I was sobbing in places...especially thinking of how she felt leaving her sons in the house. Then when her dad said "I cried when she was born, I cried the day I dropped her off at school and I cry every day now". It was sad to see the photos when I've finished reading too and "meet" Denise. Pretty girl and so young.
It was staggering too just how long the whole judicial process took considering it was a total open-and-shut case. And no doubt King will be dicking about with appeals now for the next 2 decades. It's all wrong.
The defence witnesses in the penalty phase I found staggering. Pretty much all of them lied their heads off quite blatantly and it was quite astounding to read, especially doctor Wu's testimony. How he had the gall to ethically testify to the shit he did was jaw-dropping !!
Kudos to the author for knowing how to use apostrophes and no horrible mistakes all the way through. All I spotted was a needless space in one word and ties used in place of tires plus he used tact twice when I'd have used tack. One chapter should've been September 3rd 2009, too.
I am sure her family will never, ever get over Denise's needless death. It just should never have ended the way it did. -
This was a very moving true crime book, although I would have preferred a little more focus on the players' stories, rather than so much focus on a re-telling of the murder trial. (To be fair to the author, though, the answer to the biggest question: 'Why did the killer choose this victim?' will likely never be known).
Any reader will be moved by the story of the victim. Although she showed unfathomable courage under unthinkable adversity, she was the most innocent of victims and should be alive today.
I was also particularly drawn to the story of Jane Kowalski, a 911 caller who was heroic in her own right. I would have liked to have heard more from her.
The story will forever reverberate with me: I will forever connect the story of Denise Amber Lee when the subject of the 911 system. -
I really liked this book. Having spoken to the author about it as well, I will certainly be purchasing more of his books.
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True Crime Story
A good interesting true crime book. It is about the kidnapping rape, and murder of a young mother. The author makes no effort to explain why, he just gives all the details of the crime and the trial. -
Women Be More Aware of people you know.
Very sad and a very good book. Once you pick the book up, you won't be able to lay it down. It captures at the begging. -
This book is about the Case of Denise Lee. It happened in 2008 and is by far one of the most involved books I've ever read on this topic. Michael King, kidnapped, raped and murdered Denise within hours. He drove right into her driveway and forced her to his car, leaving her two toddlers alone in their crib. This case started in Florida but involved Michigan as well. Michael King's family is in Michigan. He would come back here (yes I'm in Michigan) to visit family. After forcing Denise to leave her home in broad daylight, he took her back to his home where he had a "rape dungeon". He kept her there for a few hours then put her back in his car and drove to a wooded, swampy area and killed her. This brutal crime was so blatant and heinous it shocked everyone. Neighbors and others spotted King's car and him. They positively identified him and his vehicle. Denise tried to saved herself and leave clues. She was able to successfully call 911 with King's cell phone. She screamed "Help Me" any time they were near other cars.
I do enjoy reading true crime. I always have. However this book is extremely intense and graphic. I wasn't prepared for that. It had a negative affect on me. I remember this case. I remember reading about it and hearing about it in the news. The book gives you play by play as if you were sitting in the court room. At times I felt it gave to much detail. I think the technical side of it could have been explained better. I know those who enjoy True Crime will love this book and be glad they read it. I recommend it, but only if you are a hardcore True Crime reader. -
This book was part of a trilogy of 3 of Michael benson's true crime books.
Book 1: Watch Mommy Die
Book 2: A Killer's Touch
Book 3: A Knife in The Heart
Michael Benson is a good writer but so far I have never rated his books more than 3 stars but I think this book deserves 4. Yah.
What a sad story this was. It is so sad because the victim acted so smart and kept on fighting and she should have been saved if all the support systems had worked. Her husband did the right thing, her dad, the cops and the woman who called 911. Alas the 911 operators made big mistakes. CCSO.
Later the victim's family sued them but they came back with a statement saying they had not promised to protect the victim.
How nasty and weird.
Anyway If you want to try a book by this author I suggest this one. Yes there is much trial but I did enjoy that part as well. -
As true crime goes, this story was one of the better ones. The opening chapters that describes the crinme was very well written, it moved fast and since I was not familiar with the crime it had suspense for me, certainly one more familiar with the crime would have known what was coming. The court proceeding portion of the book did not read exactly like the court transcript, which in my opinion is a good choise, too much technical and legal mumbo-jumbo always turns me off, then a quick epilogue to let you know what has been going on and with who ties the story up nicely. I felt this was a well written true crime novel and if you have an interest in reading that type of book you should read this one.
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Not normally a book I would pick out, but was desperate for something to read on vacation. And since charging my phone is hard with no electricity, I just grabbed a book at the library. It was just a recount of a young mother's murder. Sad story. The author wrote more descriptively (like a detective) than a murder/mystery. Not really my cup of tea, although my heart goes out to the victims family.
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True crime about a 21 year old Florida woman who was abducted and killed. The first part of this book was very good, but it went downhill after that. Too much of a focus on the trial and the chapters on the penalty phase just drug by. I almost did not finish the book.
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This was such a sad story. A senseless taking of life of a young mother who had so much to live for. Well told, easy fast read. Captivated me from the beginning. Every now and then I like to read a true crime story and this one did not disappoint. Good but sad...
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Heartbreaking, true story. So many mistakes that could have saved her. Hard to read, because you can't do anything to change the outcome.
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True interesting read of a tragic murder. Lots of court talk.
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I do not think I can rate this book. Is a true story and a very sad one. I had never heard of this case before I read this and I was shocked by so much of the story.
