Shraman Mitra
For every mother, losing her child is the biggest nightmare, and heartbreakingly, Carol Dodge was forced to live through that experience when her daughter, Angie Dodge, was found raped and murdered in her apartment. The brutal murder shocked the city of Idaho Falls, Idaho, and left authorities perplexed as they tried their best to hone in on the perpetrator. ABC’s ’20/20 Stranger Than Fiction: The Murder of Angie Dodge’ as well as NBC’s ‘Dateline: True Confession’ chronicles the horrifying incident and shows how Carol’s contributions helped the police bring the actual perpetrator to justice.
Who is Carol Dodge?
A resident of Idaho Falls, Idaho, Carol lived a fairly quiet life with her children, Angie and Brent. In the summer of 1996, her eighteen-year-old daughter had just graduated high school, and she was immensely proud of her. However, shortly after, Angie expressed a desire to move into her own apartment, which did not sit well with her. After all, she felt pretty protective and was unsure about letting her go out into the world all alone. Nevertheless, after a lot of pleading, Carol ultimately gave in and allowed Angie to move out. Little did she know a harrowing tragedy would soon befall in her daughter’s new apartment.
On June 13, 1996, Angie Dodge was found brutally raped and slain in her bedroom. When authorities reached the crime scene, they found her lying in a pool of her own blood, partially dressed in a torn shirt and a pair of sweatpants. Moreover, numerous stab wounds were noticed all over the victim’s body while her throat was cut by the killer. Eventually, an autopsy determined the stab wounds to be the cause of death and affirmed that Angie was raped before her murder.
The news of Angie’s death left Carol shaken, but she refused to give up and began investigating the murder on her own. In fact, she would often call up authorities or shopw up at the police station unannounced in order to learn about new developments. Moreover, she was also disappointed as it took quite a bit of time before the police could hone in on a suspect. Authorities began suspecting one of Angie’s acquaintances named Christopher “Chris” Tapp and took him to the station for interrogation and polygraph tests. Although he insisted on his innocence and had nothing to connect him to the crime, he was ultimately convicted for aiding and abetting Angie’s rape and murder.
Initially, Carol too believed that Tapp was responsible, but she also knew that there was another assailant as the DNA evidence from the crime scene did not match the one convicted. However, once she went through his interrogation tapes, she was convinced of his innocence and was determined to get him justice. It was thus she who vehemently demanded officials to continue working on the case, leading to his conviction being vacated in 2017. That’s when they both joined forces to push investigators to uncover the truth, ultimately resulting in Brian Leigh Dripps Sr. being identified through DNA. The fact he subsequently confessed to the rape and revealed that he had no idea if he’d killed Angie then ensured Tapp’s acquittal.
Where is Carol Dodge Now?
Coming to Carol’s current standing, from what we can tell, she still resides in Idaho Falls, Idaho, with her son, Brent. Although she mentioned that she misses Angie every single day, she started the non-profit organization, 5 for Hope, in her memory, through which she helps solve other cold cases like that of her daughter. Carol revealed that she finds peace by supporting the families of other victims, and from the looks of it, she has been slowly fighting the demons of her past in order to build a brighter future. In other words, she’s trying her best to move on from the past while keeping her daughter alive in her heart. Unfortunately, though, she recently suffered another emotional blow as Christoper Tapp suddenly passed away in 2023 – she’d genuinely come to care for him, so of course, she’s heartbroken.
Read More: How Did Chris Tapp Die?
