Harmon, Orbey

Tenure Summary

What happened on their watch

Among the deaths documented in the sample provided by GPS are:

• Amos Bennett Huff, 60, strangled by a cellmate in March 2023; the Richmond County Coroner confirmed homicide by ligature strangulation.
• Rodarick Lee Hayes, 29, stabbed to death in May 2024; the Atlanta Journal‑Constitution reported that a correctional officer was accused of aiding in the attack, and the DOJ later found Hayes had been assaulted repeatedly before his death.
• Jacobi Chomicki, 23, killed in a D‑2 unit homicide in May 2026; a prisoner-source report described the incident and the victim’s identity was later confirmed by GDC’s mortality report.
• Jerry Wayne Merritt, 59, stabbed to death in January 2026 over a commissary debt, as detailed in a prisoner account reviewed by GPS.

The facility also saw suicides (e.g., Stephen Prochaska, Milton Cameron, Chad Bassant) and accidental deaths, including a fatal methamphetamine toxicity and fall‑related trauma. The U.S. Department of Justice’s 2024 investigation of GDC, which included Augusta State Medical Prison, described a culture of indifference enabling horrific violence and sexual assaults. At the same time, the state settled a lawsuit for $5 million over the 2020 death of Thomas Henry Giles, who perished in a smoke‑filled cell at the facility—a death ruled a homicide—and a $2,726 payout for a 2022 incident was recorded. Additionally, the prison was enmeshed in a long‑running First Amendment case (Benning v. Oliver) in which a federal judge held the GDC Commissioner in contempt in early 2026 for willfully ignoring a court order limiting email restrictions.

Litigation

• Martin v. Philbin, No. 1:18-cv-00212 (S.D. Ga.), filed December 10, 2018, terminated October 23, 2019.
• Martin v. Philbin, No. 1:19-cv-00216 (S.D. Ga.), filed December 17, 2019, terminated January 8, 2020.

Both lawsuits named Harmon as a defendant during his time as a unit supervisor. Court records show they were terminated without a stated financial outcome.

Sources

• GPS death records and facility‑attribution data (264 deaths attributed to Augusta State Medical Prison during Harmon’s deputy warden tenure)
• Richmond County Coroner’s Office summaries (multiple natural‑cause and homicide determinations, 2022‑2026)
• Atlanta Journal‑Constitution — homicide and allegation reporting (Hayes officer‑aided attack, DOJ findings on multiple assaults, Giles cell‑fire homicide, GDC contempt hearing)
• U.S. Department of Justice, 2024 investigative report on GDC violence and gang‑run prisons
• CourtListener dockets for Martin v. Philbin (1:18‑cv‑00212, 1:19‑cv‑00216)
• Georgia Department of Administrative Services Risk Management settlement ledger (Terry Anthony, $517,000; Justina Collins‑Powell, $2,726; Thomas Henry Giles, $3 million plus additional settlement)

Synthesized by GPS Intelligence System on Jul 12, 2026 from positions, attributed deaths, lawsuits, intel reports, and news mentions in the public corpus. The supporting data tables follow below.