A judge's ruling on key pieces of evidence today, including controversial 911 calls, set the stage for the upcoming murder trial of Michael King.
King is accused of kidnapping Denise Amber Lee, 21, from her North Port home in January 2008.
Prosecutors claim King drove Lee, the mother of two young boys, to several locations, raped her and killed her before burying her body.
Before Lee died, she called 911. That call has never been made public and King's defense attorney filed a motion to keep the jurors from hearing it. Circuit Judge Deno Economou ruled the tape will be admitted, along with another 911 call made by a driver who heard screaming from a car fitting the description of King's car.
King's car will also play a role during the trial. It will be brought to the courthouse so the jurors can see it first hand. Investigators say they found blood and body fluids spattered on the front of the car that matched Lee's DNA.
Assistant State Attorney Lon Arand argued to allow the medical examiner's report saying the body fluids appear to come from an eye, one of which was missing from Lee's body. Judge Economou ruled to allow it during the trial.
Not all of the Economou's rulings were in favor of the prosecution. The jury will not be told of King's prior acts and criminal background.
Jury selection begins Aug. 17. Because of the great amount of publicity in the case, it could be a lengthy process with 1,500 jurors in the pool.
The trial is scheduled to begin Aug. 24.
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