Kelley, Tina

Tenure Summary

Tina Kelley began her GDC career as a correctional officer at Smith State Prison in 2003, returned to that facility in the same role in 2015, then transitioned into behavioral health work — serving as a Behavioral Health Counselor at various facilities including Georgia State Prison and Montgomery State Prison from 2016 through 2024. In September 2024 she was promoted to Deputy Warden of Care and Treatment at Rogers State Prison, where GPS records show she holds a deputy-level leadership role as of this writing. GPS records attribute five deaths at Rogers State Prison to her deputy-warden tenure (September 2024–present), spanning cause categories that include at least one recorded suicide by hanging. No settled lawsuits naming Kelley individually in connection with those deaths appear in the structured records.

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What Happened on Their Watch

Rogers State Prison — Deputy Warden of Care and Treatment / Deputy Warden (September 16, 2024–present)

GPS records attribute five deaths at Rogers State Prison to Kelley's tenure as deputy warden. Taylor Anthony Hunt, 29, died on September 27, 2024 — eleven days after Kelley assumed the role — and is recorded under cause category 6; GPS intel events note that GDC initially classified Hunt's death as a suicide but that the classification was contested by physical evidence described as including ligature marks, broken bones, bruises, and puncture and stab wounds. David Woods died February 4, 2025 (cause category 6; age not recorded). Justin Waymon Hollingsworth, 43, died June 26, 2025; GPS records note the cause as "Suicide-hanging (hole)" (cause category 2). Randy Eugene Stewart, 60, died July 17, 2025 (cause category 6). John Meeks, 49, died February 19, 2026 (cause category 6). No lawsuits naming Kelley individually in connection with these deaths appear in GPS records, and no notes attach to the Woods, Stewart, or Meeks entries. The Hunt death record is the only one accompanied by an intel narrative raising questions about the official cause determination.

Kelley's earlier postings — correctional officer at Smith State Prison (2003, 2015) and behavioral health counselor at Georgia State Prison (2018, 2021) and other facilities (2016–2024) — fall below the leadership accountability tier. GPS records do document serious systemic conditions at both Smith State Prison and Georgia State Prison during overlapping periods: the AJC reported that Smith State Prison operated with roughly two-thirds of its correctional officer positions unfilled; Georgia State Prison closed abruptly in early 2022 amid a federal investigation into GDC conditions; and the DOJ documented constitutional violations at Georgia State Prison as recently as 2024. Those conditions are part of the institutional backdrop of Kelley's career but are not attributed to her individually, as she held staff-level roles during those periods.

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Litigation

• Clervrain v. Fite, No. 3:22-cv-00030 (GASD), filed April 4, 2022, terminated May 10, 2022. Kelley listed as defendant; no outcome amount recorded. Per court records.
• Daker v. Bryson, No. 5:16-cv-00538 (GAMD), filed December 7, 2016, terminated June 9, 2017. Kelley listed as defendant; no outcome amount recorded. Per court records.
• Cunningham v. Fulton County Georgia, No. 1:16-cv-00533 (GAND), filed February 19, 2016, terminated March 29, 2019. Kelley listed as defendant; no outcome amount recorded. Per court records.
• Securities and Exchange Commission v. Torchia, No. 1:15-cv-03904 (GAND), filed November 10, 2015, status listed as pending. Kelley listed as defendant; no outcome amount recorded. Per court records.
• Taser International Inc v. Morgan Stanley Co Inc, No. 1:10-cv-03108 (GAND), filed September 28, 2010, terminated July 27, 2011. Kelley listed as defendant; no outcome amount recorded. Per court records.

Note: The structured records do not indicate the nature of Kelley's role in any of these cases or whether the listing reflects direct individual liability, a staff-member defendant list, or another basis for inclusion.

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Sources

• GPS records — deaths attributed to Rogers State Prison during Kelley's deputy-warden tenure (2024–2026); position and salary data
• GPS intel events — Taylor Hunt death classification dispute, Rogers State Prison (multiple entries, event date September 2024)
• Atlanta Journal-Constitution — Smith State Prison systemic reporting (understaffing, contraband, homicides, warden Brian Adams arrest); Georgia State Prison conditions reporting; DOJ constitutional-violations coverage
• The Marshall Project — Georgia prison understaffing and conditions reporting, including Smith State Prison
• Georgia Public Broadcasting — drone contraband smuggling testimony, GDC Senate committee hearing (August 2024)
• In These Times — Georgia prison strike allegations (Smith State Prison)
• The Georgia Virtue — Georgia State Prison conditions allegations (Cassady reporting)
• CourtListener / federal court records — five civil cases listing Kelley as defendant (GASD, GAMD, GAND)

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.