John,

All of us at the Innocence Project are deeply saddened to share news of the passing of beloved Innocence Project and Idaho Innocence Project client Christopher Tapp, 47, on Nov. 5 in Las Vegas. 

Chris was rushed to the hospital after an accidental fall on Oct. 29 which caused serious and irreversible head injuries. After a week of heroic efforts to save him, he died surrounded by family. He is survived by his mother Vera, who stood resolutely by her son from the moment he was falsely charged 27 years ago until his untimely death last week.

Please take a moment to honor Chris's life by learning more about his story right now.

Chris was just a teenager when a young woman in his town of Idaho Falls was murdered in 1996. Unable to solve the case and acting on an unfounded hunch, police preyed upon him in their effort to close the case. They abusively interrogated him for 60 hours over the course of two weeks — manipulating him, using fake polygraphs, and threatening him with the death penalty. Eventually, Chris falsely confessed after being continuously tortured and lied to. No physical evidence tied him to the crime, in fact, DNA testing excluded him as the assailant. But none of that mattered. 

Chris ended up spending 21 years in prison for a crime he didn’t commit until he was finally exonerated in 2019. He became the first person in the world to be proven innocent with genetic genealogy.

After his exoneration, he joined forces with the Innocence Project policy department, the Idaho Innocence Project, and other activists in Idaho, working, lobbying, and fighting, successfully, to get a compensation law passed. In addition, he testified before various legislative committees in multiple states as part of the Innocence Project’s campaign to prohibit the use of deception during police interrogation. He was always ready to answer the call to speak out and share his experience, perspective and wisdom to continue his advocacy hand in hand with us.   

Chris was his mother’s only son and a beloved member of our Innocence Project family. It is hard to capture the enormity of his loss.

Innocence Project’s Director of Social Work Suzy Salamy said, “In Chris’s short time of freedom after the cruel experience of wrongful conviction, he was able to offer crucial support to those more newly released. He openly talked about the importance of processing the trauma of wrongful conviction in therapy and the importance of telling their stories and offering support to those struggling. He was a strong figure in the freed and exonerated community and will be greatly missed.”

Please, honor Chris’s memory today by taking some time to learn more about his story.

Rest in peace, Chris.

— The Innocence Project Team