Foulks, Rodney

Tenure Summary

Rodney Foulks entered the Georgia Department of Corrections in 2015 as a correctional officer at Valdosta State Prison, then rose through the ranks: correctional sergeant at Georgia State Prison (2017) and lieutenant there (2018), correctional unit manager at Valdosta (2019–2022) and at Smith State Prison (2023). GDC personnel records list him as Deputy Warden at Smith State Prison on Nov. 22, 2023, a post he held through 2025, before records show him as Special Assistant to the Warden at Valdosta from May 2026, with a further Deputy Warden entry at Valdosta dated Aug. 27, 2026.

Seven deaths are attributed to facilities during his leadership tenure — all seven at Smith State Prison, all recorded while he held the Deputy Warden role there. No news report in the records names Foulks directly. He is listed as a defendant in two federal court cases, one of them still pending.

What happened on their watch

Smith State Prison — Deputy Warden (Nov. 22, 2023–2025). The seven deaths attributed to this posting, per GPS's records, are: Donquerius Lamonte Mahone, 37 (Feb. 4, 2024); Gineli Antoine Gray, 31 (Feb. 9, 2024); Jaydrekus Cartez Hart, 34 (June 16, 2024); Richard Jermine Williams, 43 (Sept. 7, 2024); Orlando Jordan, 36 (Sept. 13, 2024); Calvin Bernard Craft, 34 (Dec. 14, 2024); and John Jacobs, 77 (Oct. 25, 2025). Five of the seven were in their 30s.

Hart is also the inmate who shot and killed Aureon Shavea Grace, a 24-year-old Aramark food service worker, in the prison kitchen on June 16, 2024, then shot himself. The AJC reported the shooting forced GDC to lock down all state prisons and cancel visitations, and that Gov. Brian Kemp announced a system-wide assessment by Guidehouse Inc. afterwards. A lawsuit filed by Deshonda Hagins in Fulton County State Court on July 21, 2025 alleges, per the AJC, that staff had been repeatedly warned by inmates a gun was on the premises but failed to initiate a lockdown or extensive search; it further alleges there were no guards in the area where Grace was killed, that Hart was not authorized to be in the kitchen and was allegedly permitted to violate rules, and — in the paper's account — that GDC accused Grace of helping smuggle the gun, which her mother denies. GPB reported investigators allege the firearm was smuggled by drone.

Other allegations recorded during the same tenure: AJC reporting that about two-thirds of correctional officer posts at Smith were unfilled (53 officers at a facility designed for 160), and that inmate Nathan Weekes allegedly orchestrated three murders from inside the prison, including the mistaken-identity killing of 88-year-old Bobby Kicklighter; AJC reporting of a contraband scheme in which former warden Brian Adams was accused of taking cash payments; a lawsuit over the death of Hiwatha Abdulcah Hakeem Jr. alleging attackers with a history of violence and delayed medical care; and the death of correctional officer Robert Clark, 42, assaulted with a homemade weapon, with a death certificate listing multiple stab wounds. The Marshall Project (Jan. 10, 2024) reported a decomposing body undiscovered for five days, long waits for medical appointments, and single-officer coverage of a 600-man housing area. GDC also testified to a state Senate study committee (Aug. 28, 2024) on contraband and understaffing, and the records note DOJ scrutiny of GDC since September 2021.

Valdosta State Prison — Special Assistant to the Warden (from May 2026); Deputy Warden (entry dated Aug. 27, 2026). Records show only these roles and dates; the input attributes no deaths to either period.

Litigation

• Humphrey v. Moody, No. 7:24-cv-00006 (M.D. Ga.), filed Jan. 22, 2024 — pending; Foulks is listed as a defendant per court records.
• Daker v. Oliver Filing Restriction Per 59 Order, No. 1:25-cv-03191 (N.D. Ga.), filed June 6, 2025, terminated March 30, 2026 — Foulks is listed as a defendant per court records.

Sources

• Atlanta Journal-Constitution — reporting on the June 2024 Smith State Prison shooting of Aureon Shavea Grace, the Hagins lawsuit, staffing shortfalls, the Weekes and Kicklighter allegations, and contraband at Smith State Prison during Foulks's Deputy Warden tenure
• Georgia Public Broadcasting — Senate study committee coverage and drone-smuggling allegations (Aug. 30, 2024)
• The Marshall Project — Smith State Prison understaffing and conditions (Jan. 10, 2024)
• WTOC — 2025 report on a former Smith State Prison employee charged with sexual assault
• Court records via CourtListener — Humphrey v. Moody; Daker v. Oliver Filing Restriction
• U.S. Department of Justice scrutiny of GDC referenced in AJC reporting since September 2021

Synthesized by GPS Intelligence System on Sep 23, 2026 from positions, attributed deaths, lawsuits, intel reports, and news mentions in the public corpus. The supporting data tables follow below.