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McFarlane, Andrew M
Status: active
Profile written June 21, 2026
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
Andrew M. McFarlane began his Georgia Department of Corrections career in 2015 and moved through supervisory roles at multiple facilities. After time as a unit manager and deputy warden at Rogers State Prison, he served as deputy warden at Smith State Prison from 2019 through 2022. In July 2023, McFarlane was promoted to warden of Telfair State Prison, a post he holds today. GPS records attribute a total of 50 deaths to facilities under his leadership tenure: 17 at Smith State Prison during his years as deputy warden, and 33 at Telfair State Prison since he became warden. Several federal civil rights lawsuits naming McFarlane as a defendant—including cases brought by families of men who died inside Telfair—are pending in U.S. district courts.What happened on their watch
Rogers State Prison (2016-2018)
McFarlane worked first as a Correctional Unit Manager (2016) and then as Deputy Warden (2017–2018) at Rogers State Prison. GPS records do not show any deaths attributed to his tenure at that facility. An intelligence report logged years later describes an alleged guard stabbing at Rogers, but the event falls well after McFarlane left.Smith State Prison (2019-2022)
As deputy warden, McFarlane was second-in-command at Smith when 17 deaths were recorded. Homicides accounted for many of the fatalities during this stretch. Per the Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s investigation, causes of death included “blunt and sharp force injuries to head and neck” (Christopher Reynolds, July 2021), “multiple stab wounds” (Hiwatha Abdulcah Hakeem Jr., April 2021), “asphyxia due to manual strangulation” (Christopher Redwine, September 2021), and “exsanguination from stab wound to neck” (John Brently Reyes, April 2020). Other deaths were classified under cause category 6 (pending/other), including that of Juan Miguel Orduna (October 2022) and Joseph Franklin Norris (February 2020).The prison was severely understaffed; the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that only 53 officers were available at a facility designed for 160, with about two-thirds of positions unfilled. The Marshall Project described a former officer’s account of being the sole guard in a housing area with 600 men and no working fire extinguishers. Systemic corruption also surfaced: the warden, Brian Adams, was later indicted on RICO and bribery charges for allegedly aiding a multimillion‑dollar contraband operation run by inmate Nathan Weekes. News reports asserted that Weekes orchestrated murders from inside Smith while McFarlane held the deputy warden role. None of the intelligence reports or lawsuits in this period name McFarlane as a direct participant in the criminal scheme, though his senior position placed him inside the facility while those events unfolded.
Telfair State Prison (2023‑present)
McFarlane became warden of Telfair State Prison on July 1, 2023. GPS records count 33 deaths under his leadership. A notable early case occurred just weeks into his tenure: on July 20, 2023, 27‑year‑old Juan Carlos Ramirez Bibiano died after officers reportedly left him in an outdoor recreation cage for five hours when the heat index reached 105 °F. His internal body temperature was 107 °F at the hospital; GDC labeled the death “natural causes.” The family later brought suit (Bibiano v. Garrett, 2025).Subsequent deaths include multiple homicides documented by coroner records and news reports: Zoumana Madiou Sarre (July 5, 2024) died of “multiple sharp force injuries to neck and torso”; Henry Earl Crump (September 2, 2024) was listed as a homicide; Eric Leigh Whitehead (September 18, 2024) died after a fight, per GDC; Aaron Joshua Smith was found stabbed in his cell in December 2024; Preston C. Phelps (December 13, 2025) was killed in a gang‑related altercation; and Malindzo Eddy Hatcher (July 21, 2025) died of a stab wound to the chest. Suicides (Robert Baker, October 2025) and a drug overdose (Tony Morales Adame, June 2025) also occurred. Many deaths were initially listed as cause category 6 (pending) while autopsies were completed.
Telfair’s chronic understaffing — the Atlanta Journal‑Constitution reported that 76 % of essential positions were vacant, leaving only 36 officers to supervise roughly 1,400 prisoners — was cited by journalists and advocacy groups as a factor in the violence. Intelligence reports further alleged that a former sergeant, Desiree Briley, smuggled methamphetamine into the prison for more than two years as part of a federal drug‑trafficking probe known as Operation Ghost Busted.
Litigation
- Bibiano v. Garrett, 3:25‑cv‑00013 (S.D. Ga., filed Feb. 13, 2025) — pending; brought by the family of Juan Carlos Ramirez Bibiano, the man who died of heat exposure in July 2023.
- Powell v. Mcfarlane, 2:24‑cv‑00027 (S.D. Ga., filed Feb. 22, 2024) — pending.
- Allen v. Mcfarlane, 1:24‑cv‑00577 (N.D. Ga., filed Feb. 8, 2024, terminated Sept. 19, 2024).
- Hall v. Mcfarlane, 3:23‑cv‑00094 (S.D. Ga., filed Nov. 29, 2023, terminated Mar. 4, 2024).
- Ford v. Mcfarlane, 1:25‑cv‑03524 (N.D. Ga., filed June 24, 2025) — pending; likely related to the death of Ezra Dangelo Ford (March 2025).
- Johns v. Mcfarlane, 1:25‑cv‑06658 (N.D. Ga., filed Oct. 14, 2025) — pending.
Sources
- GPS death records — compilation of facility‑level deaths, including totals (50), by facility (Smith 17, Telfair 33), and individual decedent data.
- Telfair County Coroner records — official reports on deaths at Telfair State Prison (2025).
- Atlanta Journal‑Constitution — Georgia Prison Homicides Investigation; reporting on homicides at Smith and Telfair, understaffing, and contraband schemes.
- The Marshall Project — reporting on understaffing and dangerous conditions at Smith State Prison.
- The Georgia Virtue — coverage of the Smith State Prison warden indictment and contraband allegations.
- 13WMAZ, WTOC, WGXA — local news reports on homicides and incidents at Telfair SP.
- PACER / CourtListener — federal dockets for the listed civil rights lawsuits.
Positions Held
| Title | Facility | Tenure |
|---|---|---|
| WARDEN 3 | TELFAIR STATE PRISON | 2025-01-01 → present |
| WARDEN 3 | 2024-01-01 → 2024-12-31 | |
| Warden | TELFAIR STATE PRISON | 2023-07-01 → present |
| DEPUTY WARDEN | 2023-01-01 → 2023-06-30 | |
| DEPUTY WARDEN | SMITH STATE PRISON | 2019-01-01 → 2022-12-31 |
| DEPUTY WARDEN | ROGERS STATE PRISON | 2017-01-01 → 2018-12-31 |
| CSM CORRECTIONAL UNIT MANAGER | ROGERS STATE PRISON | 2016-01-01 → 2016-12-31 |
| CORRECTION ADMINISTRATION | 2015-01-01 → 2015-12-31 |
Lawsuits as defendant
| Case # | Court | Filed | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1:25-cv-06658 | GAND | 2025-10-14 | pending |
| 1:25-cv-03524 | GAND | 2025-06-24 | pending |
| 1:25-cv-03191 | GAND | 2025-06-06 | terminated |
| 3:25-cv-00013 | GASD | 2025-02-13 | pending |
| 2:24-cv-00027 | GASD | 2024-02-22 | pending |
| 1:24-cv-00577 | GAND | 2024-02-08 | terminated |
| 3:23-cv-00094 | GASD | 2023-11-29 | terminated |
| 7:20-cv-00113 | GAMD | 2020-06-11 | terminated |
| 6:17-cv-00116 | GASD | 2017-09-06 | terminated |
| 6:12-cv-00113 | GASD | 2012-12-10 | terminated |
Deaths attributed during tenure
50 people died at facilities under McFarlane, Andrew M's leadership.
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