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Owens, Robert
Status: active
Profile written July 12, 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
Robert Owens has served in the Georgia Department of Corrections since 2015, rising through the ranks from correctional officer to sergeant, lieutenant, captain, and unit manager before assuming the role of deputy warden at the Metro Reentry Facility in DeKalb County in 2024. GPS records show that during his tenure as deputy warden at that facility, 18 deaths were attributed to his watch, with no deaths linked to his earlier, non‑facility‑leader positions.What happened on their watch
Metro Reentry Facility (Deputy Warden, 2024–2025) Owens transitioned to the facility’s leadership as deputy warden at the start of 2024. GPS records document 18 deaths at Metro Reentry during his tenure there. The majority stemmed from natural causes, with many decedents documented as having serious chronic illnesses. For example, Keithal Greatheart (63) died in June 2024 from lung cancer while under hospice care with a do‑not‑resuscitate order, per DeKalb County Medical Examiner records. In late 2024, Timothy Crumbley (65) died from a traumatic brain hemorrhage after an accidental fall at the facility, though he also had metastatic bladder and bone cancer, according to the ME’s file. Others, such as Rodney Corbin (55) and Stephen Mott (52), who died in October 2025, had uncontrolled diabetes, congestive heart failure, or chronic kidney disease; Mott’s cellmates reported he had not been compliant with medications and struggled to breathe, per an ORR intake summary. Eight of the deaths are listed with a cause category that is not publicly specified in available records. The decedents ranged in age from 36 to 85.Separately, in January 2026, an incident involving Silas Westbrook drew public attention. Westbrook was transferred to Metro Reentry after being hospitalized for minor injuries sustained during a disturbance at Washington State Prison; he suffered a medical emergency upon arrival and was pronounced dead on January 17, 2026. The GDC’s Office of Professional Standards opened an investigation, and the GBI crime lab was tasked with determining the official cause of death. This death is documented in GPS intelligence reports but is not included in the 18 deaths attributed to Owens’s tenure in the system’s current tally. No lawsuits naming Owens as a defendant related to these deaths were found in the records provided.
Sources
- GPS personnel and death records — total deaths attributed (18) and per‑facility count during Owens’s tenure at Metro Reentry Facility
- DeKalb County Medical Examiner case files — cause and manner determinations for multiple decedents (cases 24‑0199, 24‑1134, 24‑1756, 24‑1919, 25‑0620, 25‑1748, 25‑1775, 25‑1824, 25‑1843, 26‑0002, and others)
- GPS intelligence reports — details on the Silas Westbrook death and GDC Office of Professional Standards investigation, January 2026
Positions Held
| Title | Facility | Tenure |
|---|---|---|
| DEPUTY WARDEN | METRO REENTRY FACILITY | 2024-01-01 → present |
| CSM CORRECTIONAL UNIT MANAGER | 2021-01-01 → 2023-12-31 | |
| CSM CORRECTIONAL CAPTAIN | 2019-01-01 → 2020-12-31 | |
| CSM CORRECTIONAL LIEUTENANT | 2017-01-01 → 2018-12-31 | |
| CSM CORRECTIONAL SERGEANT | 2016-01-01 → 2016-12-31 | |
| CORRECTIONS OFFICER (SP) | 2015-01-01 → 2015-12-31 |
Lawsuits as defendant
| Case # | Court | Filed | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1:23-cv-01109 | GAND | 2023-03-14 | pending |
| 6:14-cv-00047 | GASD | 2014-05-19 | terminated |
| 6:13-cv-00115 | GASD | 2013-12-30 | terminated |
| 1:12-cv-00327 | GAND | 2012-01-31 | terminated |
Deaths attributed during tenure
18 people died at facilities under Owens, Robert's leadership.
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