News from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Warden hired to guard a Georgia prison indicted in contraband operation A former Smith State Prison warden was indicted Wednesday, accused in a complex contraband smuggling operation that officials first began investigating four years ago. Brian Adams, 52, was indicted by a grand jury in southeast Georgia on charges of violation of the Racketeer Influenced …
12 Georgia inmates face murder charges after January prison fight killed 4 DAVISBORO — Twelve prisoners have been charged with murder and other crimes in a fight that left four inmates dead and a dozen injured at a Georgia state prison in January, corrections officials confirmed Monday. The fighting broke out Jan. 11 in an …
David Henegar was in Johnson State Prison for a parole violation when he was beaten to death over five hours by his cellmate while staff ignored his screams and cries for help, according to a lawsuit his family’s attorneys said Georgia has settled for $4 million. Henegar, 44, was supposed to have been released to …
For destroying video footage of a prisoner’s fatal stabbing, the Georgia Department of Corrections has been sanctioned by a federal judge in an associated lawsuit against the officer blamed for allowing the attack. Chief U.S. District Judge Leslie Gardner has cleared the way for the civil case over Hakeem Williams’ 2022 death to be heard …
MACON — A federal judge on Tuesday scolded the Georgia Department of Corrections’ persistent failure to comply with court orders and questioned whether the department deems itself “above the law.” U.S. District Court Judge Tilman E. “Tripp” Self III went so far as to summon GDC Commissioner Tyrone Oliver to the witness stand to explain …
Inmate set for release this week among 3 dead in Georgia prison fight Aquinas Stillwell was prepared for his youngest brother to be released from prison Wednesday. Jimmy Trammell, 42, had spent the past decade behind bars. The brothers were going to meet up at a Greyhound bus stop in Atlanta in three days. But …
Homicides in Georgia prisons at the six month mark this year are outpacing last year, which was one of the deadliest years on record. In just the first six months of this year, the Georgia Department of Corrections is investigating 42 deaths as possible homicides — already nearly two-thirds of the 66 suspected prison homicides …
Prison staff was warned of gun used to kill kitchen worker, lawsuit alleges The mother of a Georgia prison food service worker shot and killed by an inmate last year said officials knew there was a gun inside the Glennville facility for more than a year but failed to act. Deshonda Hagins is now raising …
Smuggling cases at Georgia prison fizzle: Drugs were never tested The arrests created headlines throughout Georgia and even beyond. Two young female correctional officers showed up for their shifts at Calhoun State Prison in South Georgia with suspicious-looking Hot Pockets packages. When the packages were examined, the arrest warrants would later allege, they were found …
More than $600M to overhaul a prison system in crisis. But it’s just the start Top Georgia lawmakers acknowledged during this year’s legislative session that costly steps were needed to deal with a prison system operating in crisis mode, and they acted accordingly. The state House and Senate approved most of what Gov. Brian Kemp …