Messer, ADA Y

Tenure Summary

Ada Y. Messer joined the Georgia Department of Corrections in 2015 as a purchasing and procurement specialist before transitioning to a facility leadership role. GPS records show Messer has served continuously as Deputy Warden at Johnson State Prison from 2018 through at least 2025, making it one of the longest unbroken deputy-warden tenures in the GPS dataset. During that span, GPS records attribute 90 deaths at Johnson State Prison to Messer's tenure period — the majority classified as cause category 6 (natural/unspecified), with at least nine confirmed or alleged homicides. The most consequential single case resulted in a $4 million state settlement in April 2026, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

What Happened on Their Watch

Johnson State Prison — Deputy Warden, 2018–present

GPS records attribute 90 deaths at Johnson State Prison during Messer's tenure as Deputy Warden. The dominant cause category across the full period is category 6 (natural or unspecified causes), accounting for the large majority of deaths and spanning a wide age range — from individuals in their twenties to one person aged 91. At least nine deaths are classified as homicides (cause category 3) or carry explicit homicide findings.

The most extensively documented case is the October 16, 2021 death of David Lamar Henegar, 44. Per the AJC, Henegar died from manual strangulation and blunt force trauma to the head. A lawsuit alleged that his cellmate, Antone Hinton-Leonard, hogtied, beat, and choked Henegar over approximately five hours; that neighboring prisoners screamed for help; and that officers failed to intervene. The AJC further reported allegations that staff had received prior reports of Hinton-Leonard's mental health problems and a choking incident one week before the fatal attack, and that Henegar — who had a disability — was held past his scheduled release date due to an administrative delay. The state settled that lawsuit for $4 million on April 11, 2026, on the eve of trial, according to the AJC.

Additional homicide deaths during Messer's tenure include: Jerry Lee Brown, 61, who died November 12, 2020 from stab wounds to the head and blunt force injury to the face, per the AJC; Donald Prescott Lee, 41, who died November 16, 2023 from blunt force trauma to the head, neck, and torso, per the AJC; Michael Todd Page, 53, whose June 29, 2023 death was ruled a homicide, per the AJC; and Kenneth Adam Robinson, 50, whose August 10, 2024 death is classified as a homicide in incident report data, per the AJC. Justin Brandon Hulett, 38, died February 12, 2025 at Johnson SP; his death was under investigation, per 13WMAZ and his obituary. Michael Elias Peschel, 36, died March 14, 2026 from 20 stab wounds; a user report alleges his cellmate had engaged in a confrontation with officers two weeks prior and should have been housed alone, per GPS records. Joseph Lamar Sanders, 54, died January 27, 2026, with the report sourced to inmate accounts per GPS records. Phillip Lamar Byrd, 46, died January 18, 2026; a Telegram-sourced report alleges gang members beat him, exposed him to cold, and administered a fatal drug injection — GPS records note this account is unverified and AI-classified.

A separate death on April 18, 2026 — listed as an unknown individual — was initially reported as a suicide but subsequent information indicated the person "just dropped dead," per a GPS-classified Telegram relay; cause remains unclear. Marries Mckay is also recorded as dying on April 18, 2026 at Johnson State Prison, cause category 2; no additional details are in the record.

Beyond deaths, GPS records document a December 2023 food safety inspection failure at Johnson State Prison, with a score of 64/100 and documented rat and roach infestation, broken kitchen equipment, and contaminated trays. A separate GPS user report from April 2026 alleges ongoing unsanitary food tray conditions with photographic documentation. An escape from Johnson State Prison occurred on April 5, 2023; GDC issued no news release, per GPS records.

Litigation

• Wade v. Morgan, No. 3:23-cv-00073 (U.S. District Court, S.D. Ga.), filed August 31, 2023 — pending; Messer listed as defendant; no settlement amount reported. Per CourtListener.
• In Re Paragard IUD Products Liability Litigation, No. 1:20-md-02974 (U.S. District Court, N.D. Ga.), filed December 16, 2020 — pending; Messer listed as defendant; no outcome amount reported. Per CourtListener.

(Note: The $4 million Henegar settlement, reported by the AJC as finalized April 11, 2026, is documented as a facility-level event at Johnson State Prison; Messer is not identified as a named defendant in that action in the structured records.)

Sources

• Atlanta Journal-Constitution — Georgia Prison Homicides Investigation; reporting on David Henegar death and $4 million settlement (April 2026)
• 13WMAZ — Johnson State Prison death investigation (Justin Hulett, February 2025)
• Smalls Funeral Home obituary — Justin B. Hulett
• Low Country Cremation obituary — Kevin Kosturi
• GPS records — death records, user reports, Telegram relay classifications (Johnson State Prison, 2018–2026)
• CourtListener — Wade v. Morgan, 3:23-cv-00073; In Re Paragard IUD Products Liability Litigation, 1:20-md-02974
• Georgia food safety inspection records — Johnson State Prison, December 2023 (score: 64/100)

Synthesized by GPS Intelligence System on May 10, 2026 from positions, attributed deaths, lawsuits, intel reports, and news mentions in the public corpus. The supporting data tables follow below.