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McDay, Courtney
Status: active
Profile written June 28, 2026
Salary
$74,325
2025 · state payroll
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
Courtney McDay began employment with the Georgia Department of Corrections as a Behavioral Health Counselor in 2015 and held that position through 2021. In January 2022, McDay was elevated to the role of Deputy Warden at Phillips State Prison, a facility-level leadership post he continues to occupy as of 2025. Over the course of his approximately four-year tenure as Deputy Warden, GPS records attribute 54 in‑custody deaths to Phillips State Prison. McDay is currently a defendant in a pending federal civil‑rights lawsuit, Wright v. Mcday, filed in the Northern District of Georgia.What happened on their watch
McDay’s sole facility‑leadership posting is at Phillips State Prison, effective January 1 2022. During his time as Deputy Warden, the facility recorded 54 deaths, according to GPS data. The deaths include multiple homicides, suicides, accidents, and a large number of natural‑cause determinations, as documented by the Gwinnett County Coroner and GBI Medical Examiner reports. Among the homicides were the 2022 stabbing deaths of Jacob Daniels (18), Sidney Neally (22), Jamal Johnson (32), Alim Lovett (33), and Quafabian McBride (19). McBride’s killing, which occurred in the lockdown unit, triggered a gang war—the DOJ later found that it sparked “Bloods attacking Crips” over several days across multiple GDC prisons, resulting in 20 hospitalizations. An Atlanta Journal‑Constitution investigation reported that officers allegedly arranged for McBride to be brought to the lockdown unit on the day he was killed. Additional homicides followed in 2023 (Arthur Wimbush, 46) and 2024, including David Fambro (69, complications of facial fractures), Brandon Mincey (37), and Corey Cochran (29), as well as the homicide of Timothy Hurley (19). Suicides—such as those of Joseph Morrison (57) in 2022, William McClure (45) in 2024, and two men in 2025—are also documented. In late 2024, the death of Leroy Brooks (64) became contested: the Gwinnett Medical Examiner declined jurisdiction and no autopsy was performed, while Brooks’ daughter told investigators she believed the death was not natural and that Brooks had a history of being beaten in custody; the death certificate was to be signed by the prison physician as natural. The AJC also reported an earlier claim that Dave Stone (61) was assaulted with pipes in a mental‑health ward in 2021, dying of head trauma, though that death predates McDay’s deputy‑warden tenure.Litigation
- Wright v. Mcday, No. 1:23‑cv‑04358 (N.D. Ga. filed Sept. 25 2023). Status: pending. No disposition or award recorded.
Sources
- Atlanta Journal‑Constitution — allegations that officers arranged McBride’s movement to the lockdown unit on the day of his homicide, and that Dave Stone was assault‑injured in a mental‑health ward.
- Gwinnett County Coroner / GBI Medical Examiner records — cause‑of‑death and manner determinations for multiple in‑custody deaths at Phillips State Prison, obtained via open‑records production and OCR’d by GPS.
- GPS records — personnel history, death counts, and facility‑level incident data.
- CourtListener — docket for Wright v. Mcday.
- DOJ findings (referenced in intel events) — determination that the McBride homicide ignited a multi‑prison gang war.
Positions Held
| Title | Facility | Tenure |
|---|---|---|
| DEPUTY WARDEN | PHILLIPS STATE PRISON | 2022-01-01 → present |
| BEHAVIORAL HLTH COUNSELOR 2 | 2016-01-01 → 2021-12-31 | |
| BEH HEALTH/COUNSELOR (WL) | 2015-01-01 → 2015-12-31 |
Lawsuits as defendant
| Case # | Court | Filed | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1:23-cv-04358 | GAND | 2023-09-25 | pending |
Deaths attributed during tenure
54 people died at facilities under McDay, Courtney's leadership.
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