Sampson, Gregory L

Tenure Summary

Gregory L. Sampson began his Georgia Department of Corrections career as a correctional officer at Rutledge State Prison in 2006, later serving as a sergeant at Rutledge and at Clayton Transitional Center, then moving through lieutenant, assistant superintendent, superintendent, and warden roles. His facility-leader postings on record include Central State Prison (superintendent in 2021, then Warden from Nov. 2021 to June 2023), Dooly State Prison (Warden from July 2023 to Jan. 2025), Macon State Prison (Warden from Feb. 2025 to Jan. 2026), and Metro Reentry Facility (briefly in Jan. 2025, then Warden from Jan. 2026 onward).

GPS records attribute 51 deaths to facility-leader tenures held by Sampson: 23 at Macon State Prison, 18 at Dooly State Prison, 6 at Central State Prison, and 4 at Metro Reentry Facility. One federal lawsuit, McNeal v. Sampson, was filed against him on Jan. 27, 2026 in the Middle District of Georgia and remains pending.

What happened on their watch

Central State Prison (2021–June 2023). GPS records attribute six deaths at Central during this tenure. The provided sample names Michael Allen Stegall (Dec. 6, 2021; coded by GDC as suicide), Ronald Elbert Bryant (Apr. 11, 2022), Daniel Tyler Ball (May 2, 2022), Jerry H. Page (Jan. 11, 2023), Trong Nghia Tran (Jan. 12, 2023), and Clifford Oby Booth (Feb. 15, 2023). Most were classified cause-category 6, unknown/pending. An AJC report citing a DOJ document described a Central State Prison stabbing death of Hollis Alan Bryant and reported that three other prisoners were charged; that exact name appears separately from the GPS death sample and is noted as an attributed claim.

Dooly State Prison (July 2023–Jan. 2025). GPS records attribute 18 deaths at Dooly during this tenure. The sample names Willie Delane Snipes, Roy Mason Morris, Chad Taylor Roadifer, Joel Lamar Long, Willie Frank Garrett, Brian Lee Wainwright, Raquon Javeyonte Tucker, Dwight Junior Lance, Ricky Lee Denney, Horace Rico Mosley, Carlito Omar Soldiew-Acosta, Terry J. Davis, Zeary Davante Davis, Ancion Leroy Wallace, Thomas Adrian Chamblee, David Smith, Michael Hutchins, and Joshua Parrott. Documented causes include: Zeary Davante Davis was killed in an assault by another prisoner, according to a GDC EAH report; GDC’s Jan. 2025 mortality release lists Joshua Parrott’s death as homicide due to strangulation; the AJC found Brian Lee Wainwright’s death a homicide and Chad Taylor Roadifer’s death due to delayed complications of blunt force head trauma; and a GBI medical examiner ruled Dwight Junior Lance’s death an accidental overdose from a synthetic cannabinoid and methamphetamine. A coroner alleged Soldiew-Acosta may have been dead more than 24 hours before he was found, per the AJC. WGXA reported that a GDC cadet was later sentenced for attempting to smuggle 640 grams of methamphetamine into Dooly.

Macon State Prison (Feb. 2025–Jan. 2026). GPS records attribute 23 deaths at Macon during this tenure, including seven homicides in the sample: Marquel Smith, D’Andrius Brown, Sanchez Jackson, Lukas Lance Way, Xavier Anthony Adams, Pierre Cedric Scott, and Marquis Young. Two deaths were classified as suicide: Cassiem Mahlon Johnson and Calvin Earl Noble. The remaining sample deaths were classified unknown/pending. AJC reporting during this period described Macon State Prison as critically understaffed, with only five to eight officers staffing the entire facility when responding to deaths, and about two-thirds of correctional officer jobs unfilled as of October 2024. The AJC also reported that four gang members ran past an officer and fatally stabbed a prisoner, and a federal lawsuit alleged that Bobby Edward Lee Jr. was strangled by a convicted murderer cellmate due to understaffing and official indifference.

Metro Reentry Facility (2026–present). GPS records attribute four deaths at Metro during this tenure, all classified cause-category 6, unknown/pending: Donald Woods (Jan. 31, 2026), Samuel Dennis Hunt (Mar. 1, 2026), Cedric Clement Pierce (Apr. 13, 2026), and Thomas Allen McKendrick (Jul. 6, 2026).

Litigation

• McNeal v. Sampson, No. 5:26-cv-00039 (M.D. Ga.), filed Jan. 27, 2026, pending.

Sources

• Georgia Prisoners’ Speak structured personnel, death, litigation, and incident records.
• Atlanta Journal-Constitution — prison homicides investigation, prison system failures reporting, and Macon State Prison staffing coverage.
• Georgia Public Broadcasting — reporting on Dooly State Prison medical care allegations.
• WGXA — reporting on Dooly State Prison methamphetamine smuggling and sentencing.
• GDC Office of Research and Records / EAH inmate-death report for Zeary Davante Davis.
• GBI Division of Forensic Sciences open-records autopsy and medical examiner reports for Dooly decedents.
• UCLA Law Behind Bars Data Project / GDC custodial mortality dataset for Michael Allen Stegall suicide classification.
• CourtListener docket for McNeal v. Sampson.

Synthesized by GPS Intelligence System on Sep 6, 2026 from positions, attributed deaths, lawsuits, intel reports, and news mentions in the public corpus. The supporting data tables follow below.