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McFarlane, Andrew M
Status: active
Profile written August 9, 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 entered the Georgia Department of Corrections as a correctional administrator in 2015, later advancing to unit manager at Rogers State Prison in 2016, then deputy warden at that facility and subsequently at Smith State Prison from 2019 through 2022. In July 2023 he was promoted to warden of Telfair State Prison, where he remains at the helm. GPS records attribute 51 deaths to the facilities where he held leadership positions: 17 during his deputy warden tenure at Smith State Prison, and 34 under his wardenship at Telfair. The decedent list includes multiple homicides, suicides, overdoses, and one well-documented heat‑related death that led to a $3.2 million settlement with the state. McFarlane has been named as a defendant in several federal civil‑rights lawsuits, most directly in Hall v. Mcfarlane, filed in 2023.What happened on his watch
Smith State Prison (deputy warden, 2019‑2022) GPS records show 17 deaths at the prison during McFarlane’s years as second‑in‑command. The sample of decedents includes multiple homicides: Christopher Redwine died by manual strangulation in September 2021, Desmond Hill by strangulation in April 2021, and Justin Wilkerson by asphyxia due to neck compression in January 2021, all according to the Atlanta Journal‑Constitution’s investigation of Georgia prison homicides. Stabbings claimed John Reyes (April 2020), Taylor Brooks (April 2020), Derrick Harvey (June 2021), and others. A cluster of hangings—Christopher Heath (December 2020), Michael Canty (March 2021), Manuel Villagomez (September 2022), and Juan Orduna (October 2022)—were ruled suicides by GBI medical examiners. Michael Turner died from combined methamphetamine and synthetic‑cannabinoid toxicity in May 2022. At that facility, a grand jury later indicted the warden (not McFarlane) on racketeering charges connected to a contraband operation, and press accounts described two‑thirds of correctional‑officer positions as vacant. McFarlane himself was named in the lawsuit Hall v. Mcfarlane (filed November 2023), which was terminated in March 2024.Telfair State Prison (warden, July 2023‑present)
Since McFarlane took command, GPS records tally 34 deaths at Telfair. On his watch, Juan Carlos Ramirez Bibiano, 27, died in July 2023 after officers left him in an unshaded outdoor recreation cage for five hours with a heat index near 105°F. According to 13WMAZ, a guard allegedly responded “if he dies, he dies” when Bibiano begged for help. The state later settled the family’s wrongful‑death claim for $3.2 million. Other homicides include Lester Smith (stabbed in a common area, June 2025), Preston Phelps (killed in a gang fight, December 2025), and Malindzo Hatcher (stabbed, July 2025), all per Telfair County Coroner records. Suicides by hanging (Anthony Mulder, July 2024; Robert Baker, October 2025) were confirmed by GBI autopsies. Overdose deaths—David Campbell (methamphetamine, July 2025) and Robert Messer (synthetic cannabinoid, September 2025)—also occurred. The Atlanta Journal‑Constitution reports that Telfair is missing 76% of its essential workforce, leaving as few as 36 officers for roughly 1,400 prisoners, a shortfall that has fueled persistent violence and contraband complaints.
Litigation
- Hall v. Mcfarlane (3:23‑cv‑00094, GASD, filed Nov. 29, 2023, terminated Mar. 4, 2024). McFarlane was a named defendant; the case was closed without a reported monetary outcome.
- Daker v. Ward (7:20‑cv‑00113, GAMD, filed June 11, 2020, terminated Nov. 3, 2021). Filed during his deputy‑warden tenure at Smith.
- Timmons v. Georgia Department of Corrections (6:17‑cv‑00116, GASD, filed Sept. 6, 2017, terminated Mar. 25, 2021). McFarlane was listed as a defendant; the case began when he was deputy warden at Rogers and closed during his Smith assignment.
Sources
- GPS internal records (positions, total deaths attributed, deaths‑by‑facility, death‑event samples)
- Atlanta Journal‑Constitution – “Georgia Prison Homicides” investigation (multiple decedents at Smith and Telfair)
- 13WMAZ – reporting on the Ramirez Bibiano heat death and $3.2 million settlement
- Telfair County Coroner records (death‑incident notes referencing coroner forms)
- GBI Division of Forensic Sciences autopsy reports (obtained via Georgia Open Records requests)
- CourtListener – federal court dockets for Hall v. Mcfarlane, Daker v. Ward, Timmons v. Georgia Department of Corrections
- The Georgia Virtue – coverage of the Smith State Prison racketeering indictment (facility context)
Positions Held
| Title | Facility | Tenure |
|---|---|---|
| WARDEN 3 | TELFAIR STATE PRISON | 2025-01-01 → present |
| WARDEN 3 | 2024-01-01 → 2024-12-31 | |
| Warden 3 | TELFAIR STATE PRISON | 2023-11-22 → 2023-11-22 |
| 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-03191 | GAND | 2025-06-06 | terminated |
| 3:25-cv-00013 | GASD | 2025-02-13 | pending |
| 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
51 people died at facilities under McFarlane, Andrew M's leadership.
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