RICHMOND COUNTY PRISON

Analysis written on August 9, 2026.

Richmond County Prison, located in Augusta, Georgia, is a privately operated medium-security facility housing approximately 210 people. It is one of a small number of Georgia prisons run under contract by a private operator, and like its GDC-run counterparts, it exists within a correctional system grappling with profound structural crises. Since 2020, the facility has recorded one death in custody, a natural/medical death in August 2022. GPS’s mortality database has tracked 1,860 deaths across the Georgia prison system since 2020, a figure that underscores the scale of the mortality crisis documented in federal investigations and GPS’s own reporting.

A Private Prison in a System Under Strain

Richmond County Prison is not insulated from the systemic challenges that the U.S. Department of Justice and independent assessments have identified across Georgia Department of Corrections facilities. GPS’s investigative work has documented that most GDC prisons are 30 to 40 years old or more, with deferred maintenance that has produced systemwide infrastructure failures: broken cell-door locks, inoperative surveillance and fire-alarm systems, mold, and pest infestations. The DOJ’s October 2024 findings letter, the Guidehouse 2024 consultant assessment, and GDC Commissioner Tyrone Oliver’s own public statements have all corroborated these patterns. While no facility-specific infrastructure reports are available for Richmond County Prison, it operates under the same aging-facility dynamic that GPS treats as a force multiplier for violence and mortality statewide.

Staffing collapse is another overarching factor. GPS has reported that officer vacancy rates in Georgia’s prisons have run between 49% and 60% systemwide for years, with some facilities reaching 80%, against a national standard of no more than 10%. The hiring pipeline cannot close the gap: fewer than 15% of applicants are accepted, and more than 80% of new hires leave within their first year. The DOJ explicitly faulted GDC leadership for placing “too much blame on gangs and insufficient emphasis on understaffing,” noting that gangs effectively run multiple facilities, controlling access to phones, showers, food, and bed assignments. At Richmond County Prison, the warden, Evan Joseph, is a private contractor employee who assumed the post in 2024. Without specific staffing data for this facility, the broader crisis provides context for understanding the pressures on any Georgia prison.

Food-service deficiencies and chronic underfeeding are also documented systemwide patterns. GPS has found that GDC spends approximately $1.69 per person per day on food, or under 60 cents per meal—less than one-sixth of the FDA Thrifty Food Plan estimate for a nutritionally adequate diet. The Marshall Project’s May 2026 investigation independently reported rats in kitchens, insects in food, and visible malnutrition across Georgia facilities. GPS has further documented broken tray-sanitizing dishwashers, roach infestations in kitchen equipment, and meals served on contaminated trays—conditions that Department of Public Health inspections, which are scheduled walkthroughs, often fail to capture. Richmond County Prison’s own kitchen operations have not been the subject of public reporting, but the systemic gap between inspection scores and actual sanitation conditions is a central finding of GPS’s investigation “Dunked, Stacked, and Served.”

Sexual violence is also a systemic reality. The DOJ concluded in 2024 that sexual assault is “rampant” in Georgia prisons and that GDC does not reasonably protect incarcerated people, including LGBTI individuals, from harm. GDC’s own consultants found that not one of 388 PREA investigation files reviewed in 2022 met the law’s standards, and Georgia has never submitted a PREA certification of full compliance in the law’s two-decade history. While no public records point to sexual-assault incidents specifically at Richmond County Prison, the DOJ’s findings apply to the entire GDC system and have been borne out by staff arrests and litigation at other facilities, including Pulaski State Prison and Lee Arrendale State Prison.

The One Documented Death

GPS’s mortality database records a single death at Richmond County Prison since tracking began in 2020. Stuart Ransom Martin died in custody on August 9, 2022. The death was attributed to natural or medical causes. No further details—such as underlying health conditions, medical care received, or whether the death was reviewed by outside authorities—are available in GPS’s records. The absence of additional deaths at this facility over the tracking period distinguishes it from larger state prisons that have recorded dozens of fatalities, though with a population of 210, the statistical baseline for mortality comparisons is limited.

Leadership and Oversight

Warden Evan Joseph, the facility’s lead administrator, has served since January 2024 under the private operator’s contract. The facility’s deputy wardens are Marie Boulton (security) and Dianne Beck (administration). GPS has no records of lawsuits, Department of Public Health inspections, or disciplinary actions tied to Richmond County Prison, and no facility-specific SOP documents are available in GPS’s database. The private operator operates under a contract with the Georgia Department of Corrections, but the terms of that contract and any performance metrics are not publicly accessible in GPS’s holdings.

This analysis draws on GPS systemic findings from its ongoing investigations into GDC infrastructure, staffing, food, and sexual violence; GPS’s mortality database; and personnel records for Richmond County Prison. No news reporting, court records, or inmate accounts specific to this facility met the evidence threshold for inclusion.