Angela Jane Johnson was born on January 17, 1964, in Forest City, Iowa. Details about her early life remain relatively private. By the early 1990s, she became romantically involved with Dustin Lee Honken, a known methamphetamine manufacturer and distributor. Their relationship played a pivotal role in the events that unfolded in 1993.​

In 1993, Dustin Honken faced federal charges for methamphetamine distribution. Two former associates, Greg Nicholson and Terry DeGeus, were potential witnesses against him. To prevent their testimony, Honken and Johnson conspired to eliminate them.​

On July 25, 1993, Johnson, under the guise of a saleswoman, gained entry into the home of Greg Nicholson, who was residing with his girlfriend, Lori Duncan, and her two daughters, Kandace (10) and Amber (6). Once inside, Honken forced Nicholson to record a statement exonerating him. Subsequently, all four victims were taken to a secluded area, shot, and buried in a single grave.​

Months later, on November 5, 1993, Johnson lured Terry DeGeus, another potential witness and her former boyfriend, to a remote location where Honken killed him.​ These murders remained unsolved until 2000 when Johnson's conversations with a fellow inmate led authorities to the burial sites.​

In 2005, Johnson was convicted on multiple counts, including aiding and abetting murder in furtherance of a continuing criminal enterprise. She was initially sentenced to death, becoming the first woman to receive a federal death sentence since the 1950s. However, in 2012, her death sentence was overturned due to inadequate defense representation regarding her mental health. 

In 2014, she was resentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.​ Angela Johnson is currently serving her sentence at the Federal Correctional Institution in Waseca, Minnesota.​