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Hudson, Charles Leonard

Status: active

Profile written May 31, 2026

Current Position Warden Calhoun State Prison
Salary $93,661 2025 · state payroll
Deaths Under Their Watch 14 during their tenure

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

Charles Leonard Hudson began his career with the Georgia Department of Corrections as a correctional officer at Macon State Prison in 2007. He rose through the ranks—sergeant, lieutenant, captain, and unit manager—before moving into a facility‑leadership role at Dooly State Prison in August 2024 as Deputy Warden of Security. Hudson subsequently served as Deputy Warden through 2025 and was appointed Warden of Calhoun State Prison in June 2026. GPS records attribute 14 total deaths to his leadership tenure, all occurring at Dooly State Prison while he held the deputy‑warden posts. The deaths include multiple homicides and undetermined causes, unfolding against a backdrop of severe overcrowding and staffing shortages documented inside the facility.

What happened on their watch

Dooly State Prison (Deputy Warden of Security, Aug. 16, 2024 – Jan. 15, 2025; Deputy Warden, Jan. 1 – Dec. 31, 2025): During Hudson’s time as a deputy warden, 14 incarcerated men died at Dooly, per GPS records. The first recorded death, on September 26, 2024, was Zeary Davante Davis (31), whose cause is listed as homicide; a GPS case submission states Davis bled to death on the dormitory floor. Other deaths in the sample that GPS records note as homicides include Joshua Parrott (45, “Homicide due to Strangulation,” Jan. 12, 2025), Horario Philmore (58, “Homocide,” Feb. 2, 2025), and Darrow Brown (58, killed on Nov. 7, 2025 — a user report alleges he was killed by a gang member while being escorted). The remaining deceased range in age from 25 to 75; their cause categories are chiefly classified as undetermined or natural in the GPS data.

The deaths coincided with a deep staffing and overcrowding crisis. Intelligence compiled by GPS shows Dooly State Prison held roughly 1,593 people in a facility designed for 750, while statewide correctional‑officer vacancies hovered near 50 percent. An incident report dated November 25, 2025 — at the tail end of Hudson’s deputy‑warden tenure — describes a “staffing collapse” with many housing units left without an officer for hours or entire shifts. Contraband flowed freely: in December 2025 a corrections‑officer cadet was arrested attempting to smuggle 640 grams of pure methamphetamine into the prison, and multiple gang‑related mass fights in 2026 sent dozens of incarcerated men to the hospital. Additionally, the Atlanta Journal‑Constitution reported that an outside coroner alleged a Dooly prisoner, Carlos Omar Soldiew‑Acosta (not counted among the 14 attributed here), may have lain dead for more than 24 hours before his body was discovered.

Calhoun State Prison (Warden, June 1, 2026 – present):
Hudson assumed the warden role at Calhoun in June 2026. To date, GPS records show no deaths attributed to his watch at this facility, although federal investigators have previously documented systemic violence and neglect at Calhoun — including a DOJ finding that staff housing‑classification failures contributed to a homicide, and the death of an incarcerated man from dehydration after his water was shut off.

Litigation

Hudson is named as a defendant in the following federal court cases. Based on the available docket summaries, none appear to be civil‑rights or wrongful‑death actions arising from his prison duties.
  • Williams v. Hudson, 1:11‑cv‑03542 (N.D. Ga., filed Oct. 18, 2011; terminated Apr. 24, 2014).
  • Castillo v. Building Cleaning Solutions Inc, 1:10‑cv‑03194 (N.D. Ga., filed Oct. 5, 2010; terminated Sept. 22, 2011).
  • In Re Equifax Inc Customer Data Security Breach Litigation, 1:17‑md‑02800 (N.D. Ga., filed Dec. 6, 2017; terminated Apr. 13, 2022).
  • Conroy v. Amos, 4:18‑cv‑00033 (M.D. Ga., filed Feb. 12, 2018; terminated Sept. 4, 2018).
  • Rogers v. Gray Transportation Inc, 5:18‑cv‑00200 (M.D. Ga., filed June 4, 2018; terminated Apr. 21, 2020).
  • Starstone National Insurance Company v. Hudson, 1:19‑cv‑02777 (N.D. Ga., filed June 18, 2019; terminated Sept. 11, 2020).

Sources

  • GPS death records and case‑management submissions (decedent names, dates, and cause notes).
  • GPS intelligence reports: Dooly State Prison staffing‑collapse incident (Nov. 25, 2025) and capacity/overcrowding figures (Jan. 2026).
  • Atlanta Journal‑Constitution — reporting on the Soldiew‑Acosta death and GDC homicide list.
  • WGXA — coverage of the Williams meth‑smuggling arrest and Dooly gang‑related fights.
  • 13WMAZ — report on the gang‑related March 2026 altercation at Dooly.
  • WALB — DOJ investigation findings on underreporting of homicides and the Calhoun dehydration death.
  • U.S. District Court dockets (via Court Listener) for the six lawsuits naming Hudson as a defendant.

Synthesized by GPS Intelligence System on May 31, 2026 from positions, attributed deaths, lawsuits, intel reports, and news mentions in the public corpus. The supporting data tables follow below.

Positions Held

TitleFacilityTenure
WardenCALHOUN STATE PRISON2026-06-01 → present
DEPUTY WARDENDOOLY STATE PRISON2025-01-01 → present
Deputy Warden of SecurityDOOLY STATE PRISON2024-08-16 → 2025-01-15
CSM CORRECTIONAL UNIT MANAGER2023-01-01 → 2024-08-15
CSM CORRECTIONAL CAPTAIN2021-01-01 → 2022-12-31
CSM CORRECTIONAL LIEUTENANTMACON STATE PRISON2019-01-01 → 2020-12-31
CSM CORRECTIONAL SERGEANTMACON STATE PRISON2016-01-01 → 2018-12-31
CORRECTIONS OFFICER (SP)MACON STATE PRISON2015-01-01 → 2015-12-31
Correctional OfficerMACON STATE PRISON2007-01-01 → 2007-12-31

Lawsuits as defendant

Case #CourtFiledStatus
1:19-cv-02777GAND2019-06-18terminated
5:18-cv-00200GAMD2018-06-04terminated
4:18-cv-00033GAMD2018-02-12terminated
1:17-md-02800GAND2017-12-06terminated
1:11-cv-03542GAND2011-10-18terminated
1:10-cv-03194GAND2010-10-05terminated

Deaths attributed during tenure

14 people died at facilities under Hudson, Charles Leonard's leadership.

DateDecedentAgeFacilityRole at time
2025-11-16DEXTER ANDRES LEVY32DOOLY STATE PRISONDEPUTY WARDEN
2025-11-07DARROW BROWN58DOOLY STATE PRISONDEPUTY WARDEN
2025-10-30PAUL COUNTS60DOOLY STATE PRISONDEPUTY WARDEN
2025-10-14WILLIE MOTE70DOOLY STATE PRISONDEPUTY WARDEN
2025-09-19MARSHALL DAVIS CREWS69DOOLY STATE PRISONDEPUTY WARDEN
2025-08-17ORLANDO PEREZ GLASS49DOOLY STATE PRISONDEPUTY WARDEN
2025-04-17TIMOTHY GLENN WILLIAMS56DOOLY STATE PRISONDEPUTY WARDEN
2025-02-02Horario Philmore58DOOLY STATE PRISONDEPUTY WARDEN
2025-01-12Joshua Parrott45DOOLY STATE PRISONDEPUTY WARDEN
2024-12-21MICHAEL HUTCHINS75DOOLY STATE PRISONDeputy Warden of Security
2024-11-20DAVID SMITH53DOOLY STATE PRISONDeputy Warden of Security
2024-11-18THOMAS ADRIAN CHAMBLEE32DOOLY STATE PRISONDeputy Warden of Security
2024-09-27ANCION LEROY WALLACE25DOOLY STATE PRISONDeputy Warden of Security
2024-09-26ZEARY DAVANTE DAVIS31DOOLY STATE PRISONDeputy Warden of Security

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