Grier, Tamara

Tenure Summary

Tamara Grier began her GDC career as a correctional officer at Hancock State Prison in 2003, returned to Hancock as a line officer in 2015, and rose through the sergeant and lieutenant ranks before moving into unit-manager roles at Johnson State Prison (2021–2022) and then back to Hancock (2023–2024). In November 2025 she was promoted to Deputy Warden of Security at Washington State Prison, where she remains active. GPS records show 34 deaths attributed to facilities during Grier's unit-supervisor and facility-deputy tenures — spanning Johnson SP (2021–2022), Hancock SP (2023–2024), and Washington SP (2025–present). The most consequential single event on her watch is the January 2026 riot at Washington SP, which killed at least four people and injured more than a dozen. A separate lawsuit arising from a 2021 death at Johnson SP — where Grier held a unit-manager role — was settled by the state for $4 million in April 2026, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

What Happened on Their Watch

Johnson State Prison — Correctional Unit Manager (2021–2022)

GPS records attribute 19 deaths at Johnson SP during Grier's two-year unit-manager tenure. The large majority carry cause category 6 (unspecified/natural), but one — David Lamar Henegar, 44, who died October 16, 2021 — is documented as a homicide. Per the AJC's Georgia Prison Homicides Investigation, the cause of death was manual strangulation and blunt force trauma to the head. Multiple AJC-reported lawsuits allege that Henegar was housed with a mentally ill cellmate who had previously attacked him; that staff ignored Henegar's screams and the pleas of neighboring prisoners during a beating that lasted approximately five hours; that a prior choking incident had been reported to staff a week before the fatal attack with no action taken; and that Henegar was held past his scheduled release date due to an administrative delay, leaving him exposed to the attack. The state settled the resulting lawsuit for $4 million on the eve of trial in April 2026, per the AJC. A GPS intel report also flags an allegation of ongoing unsanitary food tray conditions at Johnson SP.

Hancock State Prison — Correctional Unit Manager (2023–2024)

GPS records attribute five deaths at Hancock SP during Grier's unit-manager posting there. Two are documented homicides by the AJC: Roland Lamont Phillips, 33, died June 28, 2023, from multiple sharp-force injuries; Francisco Melgar-Saldivar, 26, died August 12, 2023, from strangulation and blunt force injuries. An AJC-reported claim filed against the state alleges Melgar-Saldivar was not provided appropriate medical care after being attacked. A separate AJC-reported lawsuit alleges that Charles "Tristen" James McKee — not listed in the deaths table but referenced in intel reports — was placed in a dorm with known gang members hostile to LGBTQ inmates, and that staff failed to act on his repeated requests to be moved the day before he was killed; the AJC reports Cleveland Gary was convicted of striking McKee six times with a 17-inch homemade machete. Travon Montrell Walthour, 29, was stabbed to death at Hancock on October 13, 2024, per 13WMAZ and the Human & Civil Rights Coalition of Georgia. The AJC reported that as of October 2024 Hancock carried a 73.5% correctional officer vacancy rate — 49 officers for more than 1,100 prisoners — and that consultants found staffing at 20 of Georgia's 34 prisons had reached "emergency levels." GPS intel reports also reference an alleged gang attack on sleeping inmates in H1 dormitory and a reported stabbing in the visitation area, as well as a family report of an inmate held in solitary for six or more weeks with no communication.

Washington State Prison — Deputy Warden of Security (November 2025–present)

Grier assumed the Deputy Warden of Security role at Washington SP on November 16, 2025. GPS records attribute 11 deaths at the facility during her tenure to date. The defining event is the January 11–12, 2026 riot. Per GDC statements reported by the AJC, 11Alive, 13WMAZ, WGXA, and 41NBC, a gang-affiliated disturbance began around 1:25 p.m. on January 11–12, 2026, killing Teddy Dewayne Jackson (27), Ahmod Dewayne Hatcher (23), and Jimmy Lee Trammell (42) at the scene; Trammell was days from release on a burglary sentence, per intel event records. Silas Rodrigioeuz Westbrook, 42, was stabbed during the riot and died January 17, 2026, after transfer to Metro Reentry Facility; a GPS user report alleges lack of proper medical care contributed to his death, citing 13WMAZ. A fourth unidentified death connected to the riot is also recorded. Twelve inmates were subsequently charged with felony murder, aggravated assault, gang participation, and unlawful acts of violence, per GDC announcements reported by 13WMAZ, WFXL, and the AJC; the GDC investigation remains active as of late April 2026. The AJC reported that buildings with maintenance issues allowed prisoners to strip materials for weapons, that locks were non-functional enabling free movement, and that understaffing left movements unmonitored. Former inmates Earl White and "Brandon" (identified only by first name) alleged to 13WMAZ that overcrowded dorms, chronic staffing shortages, absent programming, and gang dominance made the riot predictable. A 2024 U.S. Department of Justice report — cited by the AJC and 41NBC in connection with the riot — found Georgia prison officials "deliberately indifferent" to unchecked violence, drug use, extortion, and sexual abuse, and described sophisticated gangs running prison black markets. State Rep. Billy Hitchens alleged, per 41NBC, that the prison system has not made meaningful progress on disabling cell-door lock tampering. Washington SP remained on continuous lockdown for approximately 50 days following the riot, per a GPS family report. Additional deaths during Grier's Washington SP tenure include two cause-category-6 deaths in December 2025 (Taylor Allen Howard, 66; Benjamin Horne, 51); Dajhmere Ladaveon Hall, 30, on January 9, 2026; and three unidentified deaths on February 17, 2026 — two recorded as homicides (GPS records note they "apparently killed each other in the hole" and question officer presence) and one recorded as a suicide by hanging. The AJC also reported that a GDC officer fatally shot inmate Jacob Cole Henson during a fight at a hospital while transporting him for medical treatment, and that prison officials placed Amanuel Selassie Geberyesus in a regular cell contrary to a counselor's advice after he expressed suicidal thoughts, after which he hanged himself — both incidents attributed to Washington SP or Hancock SP during overlapping periods. A GPS family report filed May 9, 2026, alleges that legal mail confirmed delivered to Washington SP on April 25, 2026, had not reached the recipient 14 calendar days later, a delay GPS records note exceeds the SOP 227.06-permitted verification window by approximately eight working days.

Litigation

• Henegar v. [State of Georgia] — Johnson State Prison — Lawsuit alleging failure to protect David Lamar Henegar from a known dangerous cellmate, failure to respond to hours of screaming, and administrative detention past his release date. Settled April 11, 2026, for $4,000,000, per AJC reporting and GPS intel event records. Court and case number not provided in source data.

Sources

• Atlanta Journal-Constitution — AJC Georgia Prison Homicides Investigation (Henegar, Melgar-Saldivar, Phillips, McKee); reporting on Washington SP riot (January 2026); $4M Henegar settlement (April 2026); Hancock staffing vacancy rates; DOJ 2024 findings; Hancock gang-related deaths
• 13WMAZ — Washington SP riot deaths and inmate charges; Silas Westbrook death; former inmate accounts of conditions; Walthour stabbing
• 41NBC — Washington SP riot; DOJ 2024 findings; Jaylin Bell death at Hancock SP
• WGXA — Jimmy Trammell family allegation; GDC gang-affiliated characterization of Washington SP disturbance
• WFXL — 12 inmates charged in Washington SP disturbance
• 11Alive — GDC gang-affiliation allegation, Washington SP riot
• GPS records / user reports — Deaths migrated from GPS-DEATH-2026 series; family reports on legal mail delay, solitary confinement, and post-riot lockdown conditions; Telegram-relayed incident reports at Hancock SP
• GPS intel event records — $4M Henegar settlement; Washington SP riot timeline; Jaylin Bell and Steven Wood deaths at Hancock SP; GDC Office of Professional Standards investigations

Synthesized by GPS Intelligence System on May 10, 2026 from positions, attributed deaths, lawsuits, intel reports, and news mentions in the public corpus. The supporting data tables follow below.