Hermann, Shelley Elizabeth

Tenure Summary

Shelley Elizabeth Hermann joined the Georgia Department of Corrections in 2010 as a correctional officer at Pulaski State Prison and spent the following decade-plus in administrative and financial roles — primarily at Dodge State Prison — before ascending to the deputy-warden tier in early 2025. GPS records show she was appointed Deputy Warden of Administration at Pulaski State Prison on April 16, 2025, and remains in that role. Four deaths occurred at Pulaski during her tenure as deputy warden: three in 2025 and one in March 2026. No lawsuits name Hermann as a defendant.

What Happened on Their Watch

Pulaski State Prison — Deputy Warden of Administration (April 16, 2025–present)

Hermann assumed the deputy warden role at Pulaski at a facility already under documented stress. A DOJ investigation of Georgia prisons, per GPS records, documented constitutional violations at Pulaski during 2022–2023, with findings released in October 2024 — months before her appointment. GPS records also document that beginning in April 2025, reports of retaliation, intimidation, extended lockdowns, and a non-functional grievance process circulated under Warden Wendy Jackson, who took command around the same time Hermann arrived. A separate GPS-documented incident from April 2025 describes a prisoner allegedly subjected to gang extortion totaling $10,000.

Four deaths at Pulaski are attributed to the period of Hermann's deputy-warden tenure. Esmeralda Carillo Hernandez, 50, died May 22, 2025 (cause category 6 per GPS records). Candace LaJon Morgan, 41, died June 11, 2025 (cause category 6). Ronika LaShawn Carswell, 50, died December 12, 2025 (cause category 6). Denecia Nichelle Randall, 28, died March 30, 2026; GPS records note a user report describing the individual as being in lockdown at the time and characterizing the death as a suicide, though coroner records are listed as pending and will serve as the final arbiter of cause.

The AJC has separately reported allegations — not specific to Hermann's tenure — that Pulaski prisoners Mollianne Fischer and Bonnie Rocheleau failed to receive adequate medical care at the facility, with Fischer allegedly left in a vegetative state and Rocheleau allegedly dying after developing pneumonia without adequate treatment, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The AJC also reported that officers and staff at Pulaski allegedly failed to notice a prisoner being stabbed until an outside caller reported it, and that the prisoner had reported being assaulted hours earlier. These allegations predate or overlap Hermann's appointment and are attributed to the facility, not to Hermann individually. Additionally, the AJC reported that former Deputy Warden Alonzo L. McMillian — who was arrested May 2, 2024, and terminated the same day — was accused of sexual contact with a prisoner in February 2024, prior to Hermann's arrival.

Sources

• Atlanta Journal-Constitution — reporting on medical care failures at Pulaski State Prison (Fischer, Rocheleau); reporting on McMillian arrest and sexual misconduct allegations; reporting on staff failure to respond to stabbing at Pulaski
• GPS records / user reports — deaths of Hernandez, Morgan, Carswell, and Randall at Pulaski State Prison during Hermann's deputy-warden tenure; gang extortion incident; family report via Thasmia Foster
• DOJ investigation of Georgia prisons — documented constitutional violations at Pulaski State Prison, findings released October 2024
• GPS intelligence events — reports of retaliation, intimidation, lockdowns, and grievance failures under Warden Wendy Jackson at Pulaski, beginning April 2025

Synthesized by GPS Intelligence System on May 6, 2026 from positions, attributed deaths, lawsuits, intel reports, and news mentions in the public corpus. The supporting data tables follow below.