Byrd, Yolanda

Tenure Summary

Yolanda Byrd entered the Georgia Department of Corrections in 2015 as a corrections officer (SP), then held supervisory posts as a correctional lieutenant (2016) and correctional unit manager (2017–2018) before being named deputy warden at Rogers State Prison, a post recorded there from 2019 through 2025. From July 16, 2026, she is listed as Deputy Warden of Security at the same facility. Her status is recorded as active.

Thirteen deaths are attributed to her leadership tenure, all of them at Rogers State Prison: five recorded as suicides, three as overdoses, five as natural/medical, with the youngest decedent 21 years old. The same tenure produced a state liability settlement tied to a 2019 incident, three publicly posted accounts from a formerly incarcerated person alleging misconduct inside the facility, and two federal lawsuits in which she is listed as a defendant. Her only recorded facility posting, across every leadership year, is Rogers State Prison.

What happened on their watch

Rogers State Prison — Deputy Warden (2019–2025). All 13 deaths attributed to Byrd's leadership tenure fall at Rogers State Prison while she held the deputy warden role there:

• Chad Walker Jeter died March 17, 2021, at Rogers State Prison; the registry lists the cause as Suicide, age 43.
• Michael Glenn Mckee died May 22, 2021, at Rogers State Prison; the registry lists the cause as Suicide, age 59.
• Jeremy Lasean Walton died June 12, 2021, at Rogers State Prison; the registry lists the cause as Suicide, age 31.
• Timothy Brent Jenkins died April 7, 2022, at Rogers State Prison; the registry lists the cause as Overdose, age 22.
• Caleb Sexton died April 22, 2022, at Rogers State Prison; the registry lists the cause as Overdose, age 21.
• Bradley Lyle Weitzel died March 21, 2023, at Rogers State Prison; the registry lists the cause as Natural/Medical, age 40.
• William Joseph Smiley died August 15, 2023, at Rogers State Prison; the registry lists the cause as Overdose, age 41.
• Randall Henry Baker died December 6, 2023, at Rogers State Prison; the registry lists the cause as Natural/Medical, age 38.
• Shawn Remar Johnson died July 23, 2024, at Rogers State Prison; the registry lists the cause as Natural/Medical, age 34.
• Taylor Anthony Hunt died September 28, 2024, at Rogers State Prison; the registry lists the cause as Suicide, age 29.
• David Edward Wood died February 4, 2025, at Rogers State Prison; the registry lists the cause as Natural/Medical.
• Justin Waymon Hollingsworth died June 26, 2025, at Rogers State Prison; the registry lists the cause as Suicide, age 43.
• Randy Eugene Stewart died July 17, 2025, at Rogers State Prison; the registry lists the cause as Natural/Medical, age 60.

Hunt's case carries a disputed classification beyond the registry line. GPS event entries state that GDC classified the death as suicide despite evidence the entries describe as trauma, and that the body showed ligature marks, broken bones, bruises, puncture wounds, and stab wounds; those entries say the evidence suggests homicide. Those descriptions are allegations carried in the event records, not findings.

Separately, a Georgia DOAS Risk Management settlement ledger entry records a $17,500 state liability payout tied to Rogers State Prison for a 2019 incident involving Angelo Lamar Roberson, logged September 16, 2019, at a point when Byrd's recorded role was deputy warden there.

Rogers State Prison — Deputy Warden of Security (from July 16, 2026). Three public accounts posted to a Georgia prison family group, dated September 1, 2026, name this role. A formerly incarcerated person claims that a housing-unit ceiling fan motor caught fire, that maintenance staff identified the motor as the cause, and that facility leadership and a fire official then discussed blaming someone, after which a prisoner from that unit was removed and charged. The same poster alleges that a civilian farm hand on a dairy detail supplied contraband and let incarcerated workers use a farm office computer, then told Georgia Correctional Industries staff the workers had broken in — and that the poster lost his detail and was refused any detail for the rest of his sentence. A third account states that a counselor at the prison was arrested after he was found to have brought drugs and cell phones into the facility. All three are allegations from a public comment thread and are unadjudicated here.

Litigation

• Hamilton v. Beasley, No. 6:25-cv-00057 (GASD), filed July 22, 2025; status pending. Byrd is listed as a defendant. No outcome or amount recorded.
• Quintanilla v. Bryson, No. 6:17-cv-00004 (GASD), filed January 9, 2017; terminated March 24, 2020. Byrd is listed as a defendant. No outcome amount recorded. The filing date falls in a period when her recorded title was correctional unit manager, a post listed without an assigned facility.

Sources

• CourtListener — dockets for Hamilton v. Beasley and Quintanilla v. Bryson
• GA DOAS Risk Management settlement ledger (Open Records) — 2019 Rogers State Prison payout entry
• Facebook, Georgia prison family group (public comment) — three accounts dated September 1, 2026
• Georgia Prisoners' Speak death registry and GPS event records — Rogers State Prison deaths, 2021–2025

Synthesized by GPS Intelligence System on Oct 11, 2026 from positions, attributed deaths, lawsuits, intel reports, and news mentions in the public corpus. The supporting data tables follow below.