Jones, Deshawn B

Tenure Summary

Deshawn B. Jones's GDC record begins in 2006 as a correctional officer at Arrendale State Prison, returns there in 2015 at a listed salary of $36,182.93, and moves through program management at Arrendale Transitional Center in 2016 and an assistant superintendent post in 2017. Records list superintendent titles at Atlanta Transitional Center in 2018 and a superintendent post with no facility listed in 2019, before his first warden-level assignment at Rutledge State Prison — superintendent in 2020, then Warden from December 1, 2020 to June 30, 2022. He was Warden at Phillips State Prison from 2022 through June 15, 2024, and has been Warden at Augusta State Medical Prison since June 16, 2024. His status is listed as active.

Across those leadership tenures, 140 deaths are attributed to the facilities he led: 115 at Augusta State Medical Prison, 22 at Phillips State Prison, and 3 at Rutledge State Prison. Court records list five suits in which he is recorded as a defendant; one, Leaphart v. Jones, names him in the case caption.

What happened on their watch

Rutledge State Prison — Warden, December 1, 2020 to June 30, 2022. Three deaths are attributed to this tenure. Curtis Mincey, 74, died July 22, 2021, from blunt force trauma to the head, neck, torso and extremities; per event records, his sister filed a lawsuit alleging he suffered from mental illness and did not receive appropriate medical or psychological assistance. Harold Edward Brown died March 5, 2021, and Boyzie Barnes died April 30, 2022 (death records). Event records also show that in 2021 officer Promise Tucker resigned in lieu of termination after admitting to smuggling tobacco and contraband into the prison.

Phillips State Prison — Warden, 2022 to June 15, 2024. Twenty-two deaths are attributed to this tenure. Recorded deaths include Jamal Cymonne Johnson, 32 (June 11, 2022, stab wounds to the head); Sidney Sanchez Nealey, 22 (July 18, 2022, stab wounds to the torso); Jacob Kendall Daniels, 19 (August 13, 2022, stab wounds to the neck, shoulder and arm); Quafabian Melik McBride, 19, who died September 30, 2022, from stab wounds to the chest in the lockdown unit — the DOJ investigation found the killing triggered a gang war across multiple GDC prisons in which Bloods attacked Crips over several days and 20 prisoners were hospitalized; Alim Rasheed Lovett, 33 (December 8, 2022, stab wounds to the back injuring the right lung); and Arthur James Wimbush Jr., 46 (April 2, 2023, blunt force trauma with fracture of the thyroid cartilage). Later deaths recorded at Phillips include Thomas Lane Dean, 18, and Ken Lisberg, 50, in early 2024.

Augusta State Medical Prison — Warden, June 16, 2024 to present. One hundred fifteen deaths are attributed to this tenure. The most recent deaths in the registry are:

• Richard Atwood died September 18, 2026, at Augusta State Medical Prison; the registry lists the cause as unknown/pending (age 68).
• Donnie Gene Poland died September 15, 2026, at Augusta State Medical Prison; the registry lists the cause as Natural/Medical (age 60).
• Alphonso Dade died September 14, 2026, at Augusta State Medical Prison; the registry lists the cause as Natural/Medical (age 70).
• Demilo Ponchorello Johnson died September 10, 2026, at Augusta State Medical Prison; the registry lists the cause as Natural/Medical (age 48).
• Dwight Bernard Freeman died August 28, 2026, at Augusta State Medical Prison; the registry lists the cause as unknown/pending (age 69).
• Jimmie Lee Dennis died August 17, 2026, at Augusta State Medical Prison; the registry lists the cause as unknown/pending (age 64).
• John Henry Tuff died August 8, 2026, at Augusta State Medical Prison; the registry lists the cause as unknown/pending (age 75).
• Anretoes Kenwood Wilkins died August 7, 2026, at Augusta State Medical Prison; the registry lists the cause as unknown/pending (age 50).
• Donald Hugh Young died August 5, 2026, at Augusta State Medical Prison; the registry lists the cause as unknown/pending (age 49).
• Phillip Curtis Walker died July 16, 2026, at Augusta State Medical Prison; the registry lists the cause as unknown/pending (age 62).
• Kolby Young died July 13, 2026, at Augusta State Medical Prison; the registry lists the cause as unknown/pending (age 24).
• Edouard Kamdem died July 12, 2026, at Augusta State Medical Prison; the registry lists the cause as unknown/pending (age 77).
• Joseph Daniel Bristol died July 11, 2026, at Augusta State Medical Prison; the registry lists the cause as unknown/pending (age 73).
• David James Vineyard died July 3, 2026, at Augusta State Medical Prison; the registry lists the cause as unknown/pending (age 58).
• Jerry Watson died July 2, 2026, at Augusta State Medical Prison; the registry lists the cause as unknown/pending (age 75).
• Wanique Marsay Odwin died June 29, 2026, at Augusta State Medical Prison; the registry lists the cause as Homicide (age 44).
• David Meeks died June 20, 2026, at Augusta State Medical Prison; the registry lists the cause as unknown/pending (age 62).
• James Dean Wilkinson died May 28, 2026, at Augusta State Medical Prison; the registry lists the cause as unknown/pending (age 69).
• Jacobi Alandis Chomicki died May 22, 2026, at Augusta State Medical Prison; the registry lists the cause as Homicide (age 23). Event records state his cause of death was undetermined and his body was sent to the GBI crime lab.
• Frederick Raskin died May 12, 2026, at Augusta State Medical Prison; the registry lists the cause as unknown/pending (age 84).
• Henry Ross died May 11, 2026, at Augusta State Medical Prison; the registry lists the cause as Natural/Medical (age 56).
• Manuel Gomez died May 9, 2026, at Augusta State Medical Prison; the registry lists the cause as unknown/pending (no age listed).
• Robert Bruce Green died May 5, 2026, at Augusta State Medical Prison; the registry lists the cause as Natural/Medical (age 69).
• Lemarcus Antonio Dunson died April 27, 2026, at Augusta State Medical Prison; the registry lists the cause as Natural/Medical (age 50).
• Walter Caldwell died April 25, 2026, at Augusta State Medical Prison; the registry lists the cause as Natural/Medical (age 49).

Inside this tenure, facility-submitted reports allege a June 2026 fatal stabbing by a gang-affiliated individual with the facility placed on lockdown, a reported hanging suicide with an emergency count in July 2026, a stabbing during an existing lockdown, and a 2026 death of a person reportedly never moved from the dorm to medical care. A family member's March 2026 submission alleged overlapping patterns at the prison, including medication denial, housing of vulnerable inmates with people known to have sexual-assault histories, gang-run knife assaults attributed to understaffing, and staff self-censorship attributed to fear of leadership retaliation; those are allegations. AJC reporting dated January 21, 2025, describes Rodarick Lee Hayes as attacked multiple times before his death per the DOJ investigation, a correctional officer accused of aiding the attack, Thomas Henry Giles left in a smoke-filled cell, Eddie Gosier housed with a prisoner with a history of strangulation, and Jimmy Lucero placed in solitary without required medical checks.

Litigation

• Morgan v. Oliver, No. 1:25-cv-01700, filed March 31, 2025, docket lists court as GAND; pending.
• Ryhme v. Georgia Department of Corrections, No. 1:24-cv-04156, filed September 16, 2024, GAND; pending.
• Emery v. Holt, No. 1:24-cv-03486, filed August 6, 2024, GAND; pending.
• Doe v. Georgia Department of Corrections, No. 1:23-cv-05578, filed December 6, 2023, GAND; pending.
• Leaphart v. Jones, No. 1:23-cv-02227, filed May 17, 2023, GAND; terminated March 28, 2024. No outcome amount recorded.

Sources

• Atlanta Journal-Constitution — DOJ findings on attacks preceding Rodarick Lee Hayes's death, the Thomas Henry Giles and Eddie Gosier deaths, the Jimmy Lucero solitary-confinement death, the AJC's two-year investigation into GDC corruption and homicides, and February 2026 reporting on the contempt hearing before Judge Self.
• CourtListener dockets — Morgan v. Oliver, Ryhme v. GDC, Emery v. Holt, Doe v. GDC, Leaphart v. Jones.
• DOJ investigation of Georgia prisons — cited in AJC reporting and event records on the McBride homicide and ensuing gang war.
• GPS death registry and internal incident submissions from Augusta State Medical Prison (2026 stabbing, suicide and medical-neglect reports) and Rutledge State Prison (2021 contraband case).

Synthesized by GPS Intelligence System on Nov 8, 2026 from positions, attributed deaths, lawsuits, intel reports, and news mentions in the public corpus. The supporting data tables follow below.