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Carr, Willie E
Status: active
Profile written June 7, 2026
This profile reflects positional accountability — this individual held the leadership roles shown during the dates shown, during which the listed deaths or lawsuits occurred. Inclusion does not constitute a legal finding of personal culpability for any specific incident.
Tenure Summary
Willie E. Carr began his Georgia Department of Corrections career as a correctional officer at Dodge State Prison in 2007, later serving as a sergeant there, before moving to Johnson State Prison in 2014. Over the next six years he held posts of increasing responsibility at Johnson — sergeant, correctional officer, lieutenant (2016–2018), and unit manager (2019–2020) — before shifting to a series of business support analyst roles, including a stint back at Johnson in 2024. In November 2024 Carr was appointed Deputy Warden of Security at Johnson State Prison, and in 2025 he became Deputy Warden of the facility. GPS records attribute 29 deaths to his leadership tenure at Johnson, all occurring while he served in the deputy warden posts. Carr is also named as a defendant in a 2016 federal lawsuit that was terminated without a disclosed monetary outcome.What happened on their watch
Carr assumed the Deputy Warden of Security position at Johnson State Prison on November 1, 2024. During his tenure in that role, GPS records show five deaths: Calvin Obie Boynton (age 61), Kevin Kosturi (29), Jason Dwight Mitchell (45), Richard Charles Bishop (91), and John W. Williams (68). The death of Kevin Kosturi was classified as a homicide. In January 2025 Carr was promoted to Deputy Warden. Over the next fifteen months, 24 more deaths were recorded under his deputy-level leadership at Johnson, bringing the total for his combined deputy tenures to 29.Among the deaths, several were homicides. Michael Elias Peschel, 36, died on March 14, 2026 after suffering 20 stab wounds inflicted by his cellmate; facility records note that the cellmate had previously engaged in a confrontation with officers and should have been housed alone. Paul Russell Brewster, 48, died on June 9, 2025, with the cause listed as homicide. Justin Brandon Hulett, 38, died on February 12, 2025, in a death that was also classified as a homicide. Joseph Lamar Sanders, 54, and Phillip Lamar Byrd, 46, died in January 2026 and January 2026, respectively, both from homicide. Byrd’s death was reportedly inflicted by gang members, according to GPS-sourced inmate accounts that describe him being beaten, locked outside, and later injected with drugs until he overdosed. In addition, Martrese Jamon McKay, 30, died on April 18, 2026; initial reports suggested suicide, but later information indicated he collapsed suddenly, and the cause remains under investigation.
The Johnson State Prison facility was the subject of broader systemic allegations during Carr’s watch. In April 2026, Georgia paid a $4 million settlement to the family of David Henegar, an incarcerated man who was beaten to death by his cellmate at Johnson in October 2021, well before Carr’s deputy tenure began. The settlement, however, was reached while Carr was Deputy Warden. Lawsuits and press reports, cited by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, alleged that Henegar’s screams and those of neighboring prisoners were ignored by staff over a five-hour attack, and that prison officials failed to protect him from a mentally ill cellmate who had previously assaulted him. While the incident predates Carr’s time in command, the settlement highlighted a pattern of staff inaction that also surfaced in later homicides on his watch. Separately, in April 2026, multiple GPS reports documented that contaminated food trays and degraded dishwashing infrastructure were causing illness among the incarcerated population at Johnson; these incidents occurred entirely within Carr’s deputy tenure.
Litigation
- Smith v. Hospital Authority of Cobb County, No. 1:16-cv-04736 (N.D. Ga.), filed December 23, 2016, terminated March 16, 2017. Carr is listed as a defendant. The case was terminated with no recorded settlement or judgment amount. GPS records offer no further detail connecting the suit to his GDC employment.
Sources
- GPS internal records — career history, death logs, facility counts, lawsuit docket
- Atlanta Journal-Constitution — reports on David Henegar homicide, lawsuit allegations, and $4 million state settlement (2026)
- CourtListener — docket for Smith v. Hospital Authority of Cobb County (1:16-cv-04736)
Positions Held
| Title | Facility | Tenure |
|---|---|---|
| DEPUTY WARDEN | JOHNSON STATE PRISON | 2025-01-01 → present |
| Deputy Warden of Security | JOHNSON STATE PRISON | 2024-11-01 → 2025-03-31 |
| BUSI SUPPORT ANALYST 1 | JOHNSON STATE PRISON | 2024-01-01 → 2024-10-31 |
| BUSI SUPPORT ANALYST 1 | 2021-01-01 → 2023-12-31 | |
| CORRECTIONAL UNIT MANAGER | JOHNSON STATE PRISON | 2019-01-01 → 2020-12-31 |
| CORRECTIONAL LIEUTENANT | JOHNSON STATE PRISON | 2016-01-01 → 2018-12-31 |
| CORRECTIONS OFFICER (SP) | JOHNSON STATE PRISON | 2015-01-01 → 2015-12-31 |
| Sergeant | JOHNSON STATE PRISON | 2014-01-01 → 2014-12-31 |
| Sergeant | DODGE STATE PRISON | 2013-01-01 → 2013-12-31 |
| Correctional Officer | DODGE STATE PRISON | 2007-01-01 → 2007-12-31 |
Lawsuits as defendant
| Case # | Court | Filed | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1:16-cv-04736 | GAND | 2016-12-23 | terminated |
Deaths attributed during tenure
29 people died at facilities under Carr, Willie E's leadership.
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