SMITH STATE PRISON
Facility Information
- Original Design Capacity
- 750 (at 148% capacity)
- Bed Capacity
- 1,526 beds
- Current Population
- 1,109
- Active Lifers
- 278 (25.1% of population) · May 2026 GDC report
- Life Without Parole
- 196 (17.7%)
Read: Brown v. Plata - A Legal Roadmap for Georgia's Prison Crisis →
- Address
- 9676 Hwy 301 North, Glennville, GA 30427
- Mailing Address
- P.O. Box 726, Glennville, GA 30427
- County
- Tattnall County
- Opened
- 1993
- Operator
- GDC (Georgia Dept. of Corrections)
- Warden
- Charles Mims
- Phone
- (912) 654-5000
- Fax
- (912) 654-5305
- Staff
- Deputy Warden Security: Rodney Foulks
- Deputy Warden Security: Keenan Carver
- Deputy Warden C&T: Willesha Warren
- Deputy Warden Admin: Ashley Kennedy
About
Smith State Prison in Glennville, Georgia stands as one of the most violent and dysfunctional facilities in the Georgia Department of Corrections system, operating for years with roughly two-thirds of its correctional officer positions unfilled while serving as the base for a multimillion-dollar contraband empire that reached from inside a prison cell to three murders on the outside. GPS has independently tracked deaths across the GDC system, and the systemic failures documented at Smith — corruption at the warden level, weapons smuggled inside, and guards watching fatal attacks without intervening — represent the sharpest available evidence of institutional collapse within Georgia corrections. In April 2026, Smith State Prison was again at the center of a statewide GDC lockdown following a gang-related altercation that sent inmates to area hospitals by Life Flight.
Leadership & Accountability (as of 2025 records)
Officials currently holding positional authority at this facility, with deaths attributed to GPS-tracked records during their leadership tenure. Inclusion reflects role-based accountability, not legal findings of personal culpability. Death counts shown as facility / career.
| Role | Name | Since | Deaths this facility / career |
|---|---|---|---|
| Warden (facility lead) | Mims, Charles Michael | 2025-07-16 | 3 / 35 |
| DEPUTY WARDEN (facility deputy) | Carver, Keenan | 2025-01-01 | 9 / 9 |
| DEPUTY WARDEN (facility deputy) | Foulks, Rodney | 2025-01-01 | 7 / 7 |
| DEPUTY WARDEN (facility deputy) | Warren, Willesha | 2025-01-01 | 25 / 25 |
| DEPUTY WARDEN (facility deputy) | Kennedy, Ashley L | 2025-01-01 | 9 / 9 |
Key Facts
- June 2024 Aramark food service worker Aureon Grace, 24, shot and killed inside Smith State Prison by an inmate with a smuggled firearm staff had reportedly been warned about for over a year
- Feb. 2023 Warden Brian Adams arrested and fired on RICO, bribery, and false statements charges tied to the Saint Laurent Squad contraband scheme
- April 2026 Gang-related altercation at Smith State Prison triggers Life Flight transport of two inmates and system-wide GDC lockdown
- $20M+ Georgia paid nearly $20 million since 2018 to settle claims involving death or injury to state prisoners across the GDC system
By the Numbers
- 301 Deaths in 2025 (GPS tracked)
- 52,801 Total GDC Population
- 45 In Mental Health Crisis
- 2,530 Waiting in Jail (Backlog)
- 30,138 Violent Offenders (56.39%)
- 5,163 Drug Admissions (2025)
Mortality Statistics
39 deaths documented at this facility from 2020 to present.
Deaths by Year
- 2026: 4
- 2025: 1
- 2024: 6
- 2023: 11
- 2022: 5
- 2021: 7
- 2020: 5
County Public Health Department
Food service and sanitation at SMITH STATE PRISON fall under the jurisdiction of the Tattnall County Environmental Health Department. Incarcerated people cannot choose where they eat — public health inspectors carry an elevated responsibility to hold this kitchen to the same standards applied to any restaurant.
Contact
- Title
- EH Specialist
- Name
- Lance Dasher
- Address
-
P.O. Box 353
Glennville, GA 30427 - Phone
- (855) 473-4374
- Lance.Dasher@dph.ga.gov
- Website
- Visit department website →
Why this matters
GPS has documented black mold on chow-hall ceilings, cold and contaminated trays, spoiled milk, and pest contamination at Georgia prisons. The Department of Justice's 2024 report confirmed deaths from dehydration and untreated diabetes tied to food and water deprivation. Advance-notice inspections let facilities stage temporary fixes that disappear once inspectors leave.
Unannounced inspections by the county health department are one of the few outside checks on kitchen conditions behind the fence.
How you can help
Write to the county inspector and request an unannounced inspection of the kitchen and food service operation at this facility. A short, respectful letter citing Georgia food-safety regulations is more powerful than you think — inspectors respond to public concern.
Sample Letter
This is the letter Georgia Prisoners' Speak mailed to all county environmental health inspectors responsible for GDC facilities. Feel free to adapt it.
May 16, 2026
RE: Request for Unannounced Public Health Inspection of Food Service Operations at SMITH STATE PRISON
Dear Lance Dasher,
I am writing to respectfully request that your office conduct a thorough, unannounced inspection of food service and sanitation practices at SMITH STATE PRISON, located in Tattnall County.
Documented concerns
Georgia Prisoners' Speak, a nonprofit public advocacy organization, has published extensive investigative reporting on food safety and nutrition failures across Georgia's prison system, including:
- Dangerous sanitation conditions — black mold on chow hall ceilings and air vents, contaminated food trays, and spoiled milk served to inmates.
- Severe nutritional deficiency — roughly 60 cents per meal; inmates receive only 40% of required protein and less than one serving of vegetables per day.
- Preventable deaths — the U.S. Department of Justice's 2024 report confirmed deaths from dehydration, renal failure, and untreated diabetes following food and water deprivation.
- Staged compliance — advance-notice inspections allow facilities to stage temporary improvements, then revert once inspectors leave.
Firsthand testimony
In Surviving on Scraps: Ten Years of Prison Food in Georgia, a person who has spent more than ten years in GDC custody describes no functional dishwashing sanitation, chronic mold on food trays, and roaches found on the undersides of trays at intake facilities. Full account: gps.press/surviving-on-scraps-ten-years-of-prison-food-in-georgia.
Specific requests
- Conduct an unannounced inspection of the kitchen and food service operations at this facility, with particular attention to dishwashing equipment, tray sanitation procedures, and food storage conditions.
- Evaluate compliance with applicable Georgia food safety regulations, including O.C.G.A. § 26-2-370 and the Georgia Food Service Rules and Regulations (Chapter 511-6-1).
- Verify permit status and confirm whether the facility is subject to the same inspection schedule as other institutional food service establishments in the county.
- Make inspection results available to the public, as permitted under Georgia's Open Records Act (O.C.G.A. § 50-18-70).
Incarcerated individuals cannot advocate for their own health and safety in the way a restaurant patron can — they cannot choose to eat elsewhere. This places an elevated responsibility on public health officials to ensure these facilities meet the same sanitation standards applied to any food service establishment.
Thank you for your attention to this important public health matter.
Sincerely,
[Your name]
Food Safety Inspections
Georgia Department of Public Health
What the score doesn't measure. DPH grades kitchen compliance on inspection day — food storage, temperatures, pest control. It does not grade whether today's trays are clean. GPS reporting has found broken dishwashers at most Georgia state prisons we've documented; trays go out wet, stacked, and visibly moldy — including at facilities with recent scores near 100.
Who inspects. Most Georgia state prisons sit in rural counties — often with fewer than 20,000 people, several with fewer than 10,000. The environmental health inspector lives in that community and often knows the kitchen staff personally. Rural inspection regimes don't have the structural independence you'd expect in a city-sized health department. Read the scores accordingly.
Read the investigation: “Dunked, Stacked and Served: Why Georgia Prison Trays Are Making People Sick”
Recent inspections
| Date | Score | Purpose | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 16, 2026 | 72 | Routine | |
| Jun 27, 2025 | 85 | Routine | |
| Jan 19, 2024 | 82 | Routine | |
| Jun 29, 2023 | 84 | Routine |
February 16, 2026 — Score 72
Routine · Inspector: Lance Dasher
| Code | Violation | Pts | Inspector notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1A |
proper cold holding temperatures 511-6-1.04(6)(f) - time/temperature control for safety; cold holding (p) | 9 | Observed milk temperature at 44 F-45 F in dairy cooler, move contents out of unit until fixed |
| 10D |
food properly labeled; original container 511-6-1.04(7)(d) - other forms of information (c) | 3 | Observed trays of food in storage, cooked vegetables, no date and food labeling. Discard. |
| 11D |
thermometers provided and accurate 511-6-1.05(2)(x) - tmd, located in refrigerators/ hot holding (pf, c) Repeat | 3 | Observed walk in units missing thermometers and some units with thermometers installed at fan units. Move towards entrance of coolers. |
| 12A |
contamination prevented during food preparation, storage, display 511-6-1.04(4)(z) - miscellaneous sources of contamination (c) | 3 | Observed a jug of water stored in ice maker, remove and clean. |
| 14C |
single-use/single-service articles: properly stored, used 511-6-1.05(6)(r) - single-service/single-use articles, use limitations (c) | 1 | Observed single service cups being used to dispense food products at secondary dry storage. Use scoops with handles. |
| 16B |
plumbing installed; proper backflow devices 511-6-1.06(2)(r) - system maintained in good repair (p, c) | 2 | Observed foot valves not working on hand wash sink, and sink is not secured. Observed hose bibb/spigot at four compartment sink broken, will not shut off. Observed in dishwasher room spray nozzle/faucet is broken and will not shut off. Observed floor drains that are clogged with trash. |
| 17C |
physical facilities installed, maintained, and clean 511-6-1.07(5)(a),(b) - good repair, physical facilities maintained; cleaning, frequency & restrictions, cleaned often enough to keep them clean (c) Repeat | 1 | Observed wall damage in bakery room, clean and paint, observed mildew in dishwasher room, floor, wall, and ceiling. Observed floor in back dry storage in small room with food debris behind shelving. Observed ceiling damage in cage room, water damage. Observed floor by cook station pitting, small holes in flooring. Observed roll up door needing a new gasket. |
| 17D |
adequate ventilation and lighting; designated areas used 511-6-1.07(2)(i) - light bulbs, protective shielding (c) | 1 | Observed cage covers/light shields missing in walk in cooler units. |
| 18 |
insects, rodents, and animals not present 511-6-1.07(5)(k) - controlling pests (pf, c) Repeat | 3 | Observed roach activity at bakery room, and at tray making station. |
June 27, 2025 — Score 85
Routine · Inspector: Lance Dasher
| Code | Violation | Pts | Inspector notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2A |
food stored covered 511-6-1.04(4)(c)1(iv) - packaged & unpackaged food, food stored covered(c) Corrected | 4 | Observed open of RTE deli meat uncovered in walk in cooler. Discarded. |
| 11D |
thermometers provided and accurate 511-6-1.05(2)(x) - tmd, located in refrigerators/ hot holding (pf, c) | 3 | Observed walk in cooler(s) with thermometers missing, move thermometers that are present towards door of units. |
| 15A |
food and nonfood-contact surfaces cleanable, properly designed, constructed, and used 511-6-1.05(1)(a) - materials, general requirements (p, c) | 1 | Observed raw wood from under shelving at four compartment sink station, remove. |
| 16B |
plumbing installed; proper backflow devices 511-6-1.06(2)(r) - system maintained in good repair (p, c) | 2 | Observed faucet heads missing in serve line, reinstall. Install pluming under sinks that are missing in tray wash room and prep room. |
| 17C |
physical facilities installed, maintained, and clean 511-6-1.07(5)(a),(b) - good repair, physical facilities maintained; cleaning, frequency & restrictions, cleaned often enough to keep them clean (c) | 1 | Observed walk in freezer floors that need cleaning, debris/trash. Observed inside warehouse roll up door is damaged and needs replacing, large gap at bottom. The storage area has issues with gaps at the floor/way juncture, allowing mice and roaches entry. Seal. |
| 18 |
insects, rodents, and animals not present 511-6-1.07(5)(k) - controlling pests (pf, c) Repeat | 3 | Observed flies, roaches, and rodent droppings at areas in facility, manager has been shown hot spots. Increase vector control. |
January 19, 2024 — Score 82
Routine · Inspector: Lance Dasher
| Code | Violation | Pts | Inspector notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2B |
proper eating, tasting, drinking, or tobacco use 511-6-1.03(5)(k)1&2 - eating, drinking, or using tobacco (c) Corrected | 4 | Observed drinks in kitchen not in a designated area away from prep and storage, in bakery, prep area, and serve line. |
| 2B |
food-contact surfaces: cleaned & sanitized 511-6-1.05(6)(n) - manual and mechanical warewashing equipment, chemical sanitization-temperature, ph, concentration, hardness (p,pf) Corrected | 4 | Observed sanitizer level in sink not detectable, water dropped and refilled. |
| 15A |
food and nonfood-contact surfaces cleanable, properly designed, constructed, and used 511-6-1.05(6)(a) - good repair & proper adjustment (c) Repeat | 1 | Observed tilt skillet with wood used to provide support, remove (repeat). Observed latch to dairy cooler door broken, repair. |
| 16B |
plumbing installed; proper backflow devices 511-6-1.06(2)(r) - system maintained in good repair (p, c) Repeat | 2 | Observed faucet leaks at 4 compartment sink, prep sinks, tray machine room rinse station, utility room faucet. |
| 17C |
physical facilities installed, maintained, and clean 511-6-1.07(5)(a),(b) - good repair, physical facilities maintained; cleaning, frequency & restrictions, cleaned often enough to keep them clean (c) Repeat | 1 | Observed ceiling damage in areas of kitchen, pack out room, washing area, side door entrance. Bakery room has wall damage due to metal pans. |
| 18 |
insects, rodents, and animals not present 511-6-1.07(5)(k) - controlling pests (pf, c) | 3 | Observed rodent activity in side warehouse and at caged equipment/spices. Roach activity in tray machine room and serving line by side entrance. |
June 29, 2023 — Score 84
Routine · Inspector: Lance Dasher
| Code | Violation | Pts | Inspector notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2D |
adequate handwashing facilities supplied & accessible 511-6-1.06(2)(o) - using a handwashing sink- operation & maintenance (pf) | 4 | Observed hand wash station with no faucet head, and no soap. |
| 12A |
contamination prevented during food preparation, storage, display 511-6-1.04(4)(z) - miscellaneous sources of contamination (c) Corrected | 3 | Observed plastic food trays and jug of water in bottom of ice maker, removed, clean unit. |
| 15A |
food and nonfood-contact surfaces cleanable, properly designed, constructed, and used 511-6-1.05(6)(a) - good repair & proper adjustment (c) Repeat | 1 | Observed steam and condensation buildup in tray washing room. Areas under machine and shelving has black mildew on surfaces. Observed pieces of wood used to level tilting skillets, remove and use metal or plastic to elevate. |
| 16B |
plumbing installed; proper backflow devices 511-6-1.06(2)(r) - system maintained in good repair (p, c) | 2 | Observed sinks at dishwashing area with leaks on faucets and drain pipes. Floor drain was clogged, but was cleared. Observed sinks that could not shut off water flow in tray serving areas. |
| 17C |
physical facilities installed, maintained, and clean 511-6-1.07(5)(a),(b) - good repair, physical facilities maintained; cleaning, frequency & restrictions, cleaned often enough to keep them clean (c) Repeat | 1 | Observed rollup door damaged at small warehouse, spice storage room needs ventilation and continue painting. Ceiling damage observed in pack out room, serve line, and dishwashing area. |
| 18 |
insects, rodents, and animals not present 511-6-1.07(5)(k) - controlling pests (pf, c) | 3 | Observed flies in kitchen, need to keep exterior hallway for garbage disposal closed as much as possible, plastic curtain not be used properly (tied back). Rodent activity is at a better level. |
Recent reports (61)
Source-attributed observations and allegations from news coverage and reports submitted to GPS. Each entry credits its source.
- ALLEGATION According to The Georgia Virtue Published: May 13, 2026Adams allegedly participated in a RICO organization (Yves Saint Laurent Squad) and accepted currency bribes through a pattern of racketeering associated with the enterprise run by inmate Nathan Weekes.
"They also contended that Adams participated in a RICO organization, being Yves Saint Laurent Squad run by then-Smith State Prison inmate Nathan Weekes, and he committed the offenses of Bribery and False Statements and Writings in furtherance of the RICO organization. Adams, they said, was bribed when he accepted currency through a pattern of racketeering associated with the RICO enterprise."
Read source → - ALLEGATION According to The Georgia Virtue Published: May 13, 2026Agents alleged that Adams provided false statements in an April 13, 2022 interview when he stated he had not been solicited or bribed by a GDC inmate in the past 10 years.
"Agents alleged that Adams provided false statements in an April 13, 2022 interview when he stated he has not been solicited or bribed by a Georgia Department of Corrections inmate in the past 10 years."
Read source → - ALLEGATION According to The Georgia Virtue Published: May 13, 2026The civil suit alleges Adams should have noticed contraband including cell phones, narcotics, weapons, designer brand clothing, jewelry, and tobacco at Smith State Prison.
"Specifically, the lawsuit contends that the contraband items, including cell phones, narcotics, weapons, designer brand clothing, jewelry, and tobacco should have been noticed by Warden Brian Adams."
Read source → - ALLEGATION According to The Georgia Virtue Published: May 13, 2026The civil suit alleges that Ireon Moore was paid to participate in the conspiracy, with financial arrangements carried out through text message.
"It also alleges that Ireon Moore was paid to participate in the conspiracy and the financial arrangements were carried out through text message."
Read source → - ALLEGATION According to The Georgia Virtue Published: May 13, 2026Adams remained as warden even after GDC learned of at least two murders alleged to have been orchestrated from behind the walls of Smith State Prison, some eighteen months prior to his eventual termination.
"More notably, Adams was warden at the time of at least two murders alleged to have been orchestrated from behind the walls of Smith State Prison and he remained at that post even after the Georgia Department of Corrections learned of the murders, some eighteen months prior to his eventual termination."
Read source →
Smith State Prison, a close-security men's facility in Glennville, Georgia, has emerged over the past several years as one of the most documented case studies in the operational collapse of the Georgia Department of Corrections (GDC). Reporting from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Georgia Public Broadcasting, The Marshall Project, and other outlets, combined with court filings and federal scrutiny, paints a picture of a prison where chronic understaffing, a corrupt warden, drone-delivered contraband, and inmate-led criminal enterprises converged into a homicide rate that broke state records and produced two on-duty deaths of civilian and uniformed staff inside a single year. The threads below trace those dynamics: the staffing collapse, the contraband economy that grew inside it, the warden-level corruption that sat atop both, the resulting violence — including the killings of Aramark employee Aureon Shavea Grace and Officer Robert Danford Clark — and the broader institutional failures the facility now exemplifies.
A Staffing Collapse That Produced an Unsupervised Prison
Multiple outlets have reported that Smith State Prison ran for extended periods at a fraction of the staffing level its design assumed. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution described the facility as one of the most understaffed, violent, and dysfunctional in the state, reporting that approximately two-thirds of correctional officer positions were unfilled, leaving roughly 53 officers at a prison designed for 160. The same reporting found that as of August 2023, eight Georgia state prisons had correctional officer vacancy rates of 70% or higher. The Marshall Project's reporting on former Smith State officer Andrew Phillips put a human face on those numbers: Phillips was the sole officer assigned to an area housing 600 men when inmates set mattresses on fire, with no functioning fire extinguishers available; on another occasion he worked 11 consecutive days, fielding a mass mattress fire, inmates throwing feces and urine, and an escort assignment to a hospital for a stabbing victim, before describing the environment as "too brutal, too disgusting." Phillips resigned, was persuaded to return briefly in another role, and permanently left the GDC in February 2023.
The downstream effects of that staffing posture are documented across multiple deaths. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that prisoners can lie dead in their cells for hours or days before anyone notices, and The Marshall Project reported that Georgia prison employees in one incident failed to notice a dead, decomposing body for five days. That account aligns with the death of Anthony Joseph Zino III, 71, whose body was found at Smith State Prison on April 5, 2023; the local coroner noted the body was badly decomposed and the man had likely been dead for days before being discovered. The same reporting documented that overworked, sleep-deprived staff are more likely to use excessive force, and that incarcerated people endured long waits for medical appointments, weeks without recreation, and shortages of basic hygiene supplies. From 2019 to 2022, Georgia's spending on overtime for prison workers grew to more than $4 million — more than 11 times the pre-pandemic level — even as corrections staff decreased by about one-third. GDC has since reported that correctional officer starting salaries rose from $31,040 in January 2019 to $44,044, with Governor Brian Kemp proposing a further $3,000 targeted increase, and the AJC reported the agency's CO turnover rate falling from 47.8% in FY22 to 35.7% in FY24.
A Contraband Economy Built Around the Facility
Reporting across multiple outlets has converged on the conclusion that Smith State Prison sits at the center of a contraband economy in which cell phones, drugs, and weapons move with substantial regularity through both staff and external channels. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that during 2023 alone, seven shakedowns at Smith State yielded 1,509 weapons, 694 cell phones, 854 phone chargers, 7.55 kilos of marijuana, and 12.53 kilos of tobacco. A former corrections officer told the AJC that the prison's back gate, used for supplies, lacked a metal detector — a gap potentially allowing weapons to enter undetected. Cell phones, which are contraband in Georgia prisons, were alleged in In These Times reporting to be widely available for purchase from correctional officers. The AJC has reported that 425 GDC employees have been arrested since 2018 for on-the-job crimes, the majority for contraband smuggling, and that prosecuted employees rarely face prison time. GDC's own framing, attributed in news coverage to Director Tyrone Oliver, holds that contraband-introduction attempts are predominantly made by civilians rather than GDC personnel; AJC reporting noted that during a year-long stretch ending in June 2024, the agency arrested 69 staff members, 204 inmates, and 554 civilians, and tallied more than 430 reports of drones.
The contraband economy at Smith State has been linked to crimes far beyond the prison walls. The AJC reported that gang member Ricardo Silva ran a methamphetamine trafficking operation coordinating deliveries from Mexico while segregated for 23 hours a day at Smith State; agents ultimately seized more than 100 pounds of liquid and crystal meth, and Silva was sentenced to 35 years. Inmate Nathan Weekes is alleged to have led a multimillion-dollar contraband scheme from inside Smith State and to have orchestrated three murders, including the 2021 mistaken-identity killing of 88-year-old Bobby Kicklighter, who was shot to death in his bed in Glennville. The GBI determined the killing was a hit ordered by Weekes against a correctional officer who lived next door to Kicklighter and was cracking down on contraband; Weekes' associates went to the wrong house. AJC reporting also described an inmate who admitted to stealing $11 million from an investment account using a smuggled cellphone, reportedly paying up to $10,000 for the device, and inmate Allen, who allegedly coordinated with the Ghostface Gangsters to run a drug-trafficking enterprise from prison while serving a life sentence.
Warden-Level Corruption: The Brian Adams Case
The contraband economy at Smith State did not stop at the line-officer level. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that then-warden Brian Adams was arrested and fired in connection with a sprawling contraband scheme tied to inmate Nathan Weekes and known as the Saint Laurent Squad. Adams is alleged to have received U.S. currency through a pattern of racketeering activity and was charged with violating Georgia's RICO Act, bribery, making false statements, and violating his oath as a public officer. The AJC noted that as of mid-November 2023, the GDC website listed only four worker arrests for the year, even though records reflected 38 worker arrests involving contraband at that point — a discrepancy the paper used to characterize the agency's transparency posture. Macon-area District Attorney T. Wright Barksdale III, who previously prosecuted Ricky Dubose for the 2017 murders of two correctional officers on a prison transport bus, was quoted alleging that the state continues "on a path of denial regarding the magnitude of GDC problems while more people lose their lives." The AJC also reported that the GDC, unlike the federal Bureau of Prisons, does not research the credit or financial histories of its applicants, which the paper framed as contributing to the hiring of financially vulnerable employees susceptible to corruption.
The Killing of Aureon Grace and the Smuggled Firearm
On June 16, 2024, at approximately 4:30 a.m., 24-year-old Aramark food service employee Aureon Shavea Grace was shot in the head and killed inside the kitchen at Smith State Prison by inmate Jaydrekus Hart, who then shot himself and was pronounced dead at a local hospital. The death was ruled a murder-suicide. According to reporting by Georgia Public Broadcasting, investigators allege that someone used a drone to smuggle the firearm Hart used; state officials have not publicly disclosed how the gun was brought in. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that there were no guards in the area where Grace was shot, and that Hart was not authorized to be in the kitchen at the time of the shooting but was allegedly favored by GDC staff and permitted to violate rules with impunity.
A lawsuit filed by Grace's mother, Deshonda Hagins, in Fulton County State Court alleges that prison staff were repeatedly warned by inmates that a gun was on the premises but failed to initiate a lockdown, conduct an extensive search, or put protective measures in place. The suit seeks a jury trial and unspecified compensation. AJC reporting documented that, after Grace's death, the GDC accused Grace of helping Hart smuggle the gun into the prison — an account her mother denies, telling the paper that the gun was on the grounds before Grace started the job. The GDC placed all of its prisons on lockdown and canceled visitations following the shooting; roads leading into Smith State were closed and officers in tactical gear were stationed at the entrance. Governor Kemp subsequently announced an in-depth, system-wide assessment of the corrections system to be conducted over 12 months by Guidehouse Inc., including prison visits, stakeholder interviews, and recommendations.
Officer Robert Clark and a Record Year of In-Custody Killings
Smith State has been the site of a sustained run of homicide deaths documented in news reporting and death-record review. On October 1, 2023, Correctional Officer Robert Danford Clark, 42, died from multiple stab wounds after being attacked by an inmate with a homemade weapon. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution's review of GDC mortality reports and death records determined that 2023 set a record for homicides inside Georgia's prisons, with 37 deaths including Officer Clark's killing; departmental records cited in news coverage reflected 40 homicides and 38 suicides in fiscal year 2023, and at least 90 people slain in Georgia prisons between 2020 and the end of 2022 — three times the prior three-year total. At least 43 state prisoners died by suicide in 2022, and at least 49 prisoners died of drug overdoses between 2019 and 2022, compared with two in 2018.
The roster of homicide deaths reported at Smith State Prison alone, drawn from news reporting and death-certificate review, includes Taylor Harrison Brooks, 26, who died April 10, 2020 from multiple stab wounds; John Bretleir Reyes Cardona, 24, who died April 20, 2020 from exsanguination due to a stab wound to the neck; Justin Nathaniel Wilkerson, 25, who died January 5, 2021 from asphyxia due to neck compression and whose mother later testified before the Georgia Legislature; Desmond Hill, 35, who died April 9, 2021 from strangulation, and who reportedly called his mother the day before his death to say his cellmate had threatened to kill him; Hiwatha Abdulcah Hakeem Jr., 26, who died April 12, 2021 from multiple stab wounds, with a lawsuit alleging the four prisoners who attacked him had a history of violence and that prison officials failed to provide timely and adequate medical care; Derrick Dionte Deshun Harvey, 26, who died June 25, 2021 from a stab wound to the chest; Christopher Ray Reynolds, 38, who died July 1, 2021 from blunt and sharp force injuries to the head and neck; Christopher Michael Redwine, 45, who died September 27, 2021 from manual strangulation; Nathan Michael Mahan, 37, who died October 23, 2022 from stab wounds; Randy O'Neal Wynn, 54, who died March 2, 2023 with the death certificate listing the investigation as pending; Anthony Joseph Zino III, 71, who died April 5, 2023; Calvin Darrell Denson Jr., 31, who died April 26, 2023 from a stab wound to the chest in a fight involving seven inmates; Shaquan Jahrel Boykins, 31, who died May 11, 2023 from blunt impact injuries to the head; Justin Tyler Smith, 37, who died July 28, 2023 from an epidural hematoma after being punched and falling; Quenton G. Mayo, 30, who died August 14, 2023 from stab wounds to the neck in an incident reportedly involving four prisoners; James Adams Jr., 72, who died November 8, 2023 from blunt force trauma to the head and neck; and Donquerius Lamonte Mahone, 37, who died February 3, 2024 from homicide.
The AJC also reported one prisoner at Smith State who was tied up, beaten, waterboarded, and sexually assaulted by his cellmate; bars of soap that had apparently been used in the assault fell out of his body when he was hospitalized, and he was found with ligature marks on his neck and most upper teeth broken. GPS has received accounts of additional violent altercations at Smith State Prison that triggered facility lockdowns and air medical transport of seriously injured incarcerated individuals.
Litigation, Federal Scrutiny, and the Broader Pattern
The Southern Center for Human Rights filed a lawsuit against the Georgia Department of Corrections in 2021 over poor prison conditions, and as of news coverage cited above, the Georgia prison system has been under scrutiny by the U.S. Department of Justice since September 2021 alongside a Georgia Senate study committee on corrections facilities. GDC officials testified before the Senate Department of Corrections Facilities Study Committee on drones, contraband, overcrowding, aging facilities, and understaffing, and the AJC reported a $17.5 million increase in the current-year capital maintenance budget that, per Director Oliver, is being directed toward repairs and upgrades to prison infrastructure.
The pattern at Smith State sits inside a longer arc of organized prisoner protest and state response. In These Times reporting on the December 2010 "Lockdown for Liberty" strike — described as one of the largest prison protests in U.S. history — documented inmate allegations that Georgia prisoners are confined in overcrowded, substandard conditions with little heat in winter and oppressive heat in summer; that cell phones are widely available from correctional officers; that the Georgia Parole Board capriciously denies parole to most eligible prisoners; that the GDC forces prisoners to work for free in violation of the Thirteenth Amendment; that the agency denies adequate medical care and charges excessive fees; and that officers subject prisoners to cruel and unusual punishments for minor rule infractions. The strike was called off after six days following reports of violent crackdowns, with prison staff locking down four facilities, attempting to transfer organizers, cutting off hot water, and revoking cell phone privileges. An inmate at Smith State told In These Times that prisoners ended the protest to allow administrators time to address concerns and to pursue a prison conditions lawsuit. The AJC reported that drug trafficking rings are commonplace in Georgia prisons, often with the help of guards, and that high-ranking GDC officers — including a warden and a food service director — have been charged with criminal wrongdoing. The Marshall Project's reporting framed the staffing crisis as compounded by GDC's continued incarceration of people for technical parole violations, even as elderly and sick prisoners could be released without risking public safety.
Sources
This analysis draws on investigative reporting from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Georgia Public Broadcasting, The Marshall Project, In These Times, and WTOC; lawsuits filed in Fulton County State Court and by the Southern Center for Human Rights; GDC mortality reports and death-certificate records reviewed in published reporting; and accounts collected by Georgia Prisoners' Speak (GPS) staff.
Timeline (140)
Source Articles (38)
Former leadership
Officials who previously held leadership roles at this facility.
| Role | Name | Tenure | Deaths this facility / career |
|---|---|---|---|
| CORRECTIONAL SUPERINTENDENT (facility lead) | Todd, Curtis J | 2025-01-01 → 2025-01-31 | — / — |
| WARDEN 1 (facility lead) | Mims, Charles Michael | 2025-01-01 → 2025-07-15 | 3 / 35 |
| WARDEN 3 (facility lead) | Beasley, Jacob | 2024-01-01 → 2024-12-31 | 17 / 54 |
| WARDEN 3 (facility lead) | Beasley, Jacob | 2023-01-01 → 2023-12-31 | 17 / 54 |
| Warden (facility lead) | Adams, Brian | 2018-03-01 → 2024-01-01 | 28 / 28 |
| DEPUTY WARDEN (facility deputy) | Kennedy, Ashley L | 2024-01-01 → 2024-12-31 | 9 / 9 |
| DEPUTY WARDEN (facility deputy) | Warren, Willesha | 2024-01-01 → 2024-12-31 | 25 / 25 |
| DEPUTY WARDEN (facility deputy) | Foulks, Rodney | 2024-01-01 → 2024-12-31 | 7 / 7 |
| DEPUTY WARDEN (facility deputy) | Carver, Keenan | 2024-01-01 → 2024-12-31 | 9 / 9 |
| DEPUTY WARDEN (facility deputy) | Warren, Willesha | 2023-01-01 → 2023-12-31 | 25 / 25 |
| DEPUTY WARDEN (facility deputy) | Epperson, Alicia | 2022-01-01 → 2022-12-31 | 5 / 5 |
| DEPUTY WARDEN (facility deputy) | Warren, Willesha | 2022-01-01 → 2022-12-31 | 25 / 25 |
| DEPUTY WARDEN (facility deputy) | McFarlane, Andrew M | 2022-01-01 → 2022-12-31 | 17 / 49 |
| DEPUTY WARDEN (facility deputy) | McFarlane, Andrew M | 2021-01-01 → 2021-12-31 | 17 / 49 |
| DEPUTY WARDEN (facility deputy) | COX, Eric | 2021-01-01 → 2021-12-31 | 7 / 50 |
| DEPUTY WARDEN (facility deputy) | Brown, Vashti J | 2020-01-01 → 2020-12-31 | 5 / 5 |
| DEPUTY WARDEN (facility deputy) | McFarlane, Andrew M | 2020-01-01 → 2020-12-31 | 17 / 49 |
| Deputy Warden of Security (facility deputy) | Henderson, Marcus | 2019-01-01 → 2023-01-01 | 17 / 17 |
| DEPUTY WARDEN (facility deputy) | McFarlane, Andrew M | 2019-01-01 → 2019-12-31 | 17 / 49 |
| DEPUTY WARDEN (facility deputy) | Brown, Vashti J | 2019-01-01 → 2019-12-31 | 5 / 5 |