Scott, Tracey

Tenure Summary

What happened on their watch

Calhoun State Prison (Deputy Warden, 2020–present)

Investigative reporting and federal findings during this tenure paint a picture of systemic failures. According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, a U.S. Department of Justice investigation found that staff at Calhoun failed to follow classification and housing procedures when moving Lackey’s assailant, leading to his cellmate killing him. The DOJ also documented that an incarcerated person died of dehydration with renal failure after staff shut off his water, closed his door flap, and failed to provide meals for two days. WALB reported that Willie Willis’s family alleged he was thrown from a balcony and that nearly an hour passed before he was airlifted for treatment, contradicting a nurse’s account that he had merely come for Tylenol.

Broader DOJ findings applicable to GDC prisons documented systematic under‑reporting of homicides, with the state reporting only 6 homicides in early 2024 while internal incident reports had at least 18 in the same period; less than 10% of prison fights and 6% of weapons incidents were forwarded for investigation; and EMS response was delayed an average of 30 minutes due to understaffing. Investigators concluded that Georgia’s prison system fails to provide “the constitutionally required minimum of reasonable physical safety.” Those patterns overlapped with Scott’s deputy warden years, during which contraband cell‑phone operations, mass lifer transfers, and the Hot Pockets drug‑smuggling case also occurred at the prison.

Litigation

• Willis v. Government Employees Insurance Company (5:23‑cv‑00430, GAMD; filed Oct. 26, 2023; terminated Jan. 23, 2026) – no settlement amount reported.
• Wade v. Morgan (3:23‑cv‑00073, GASD; filed Aug. 31, 2023; pending) – no disposition.
• Richardson v. The Georgia Department of Transportation (1:19‑cv‑00054, GAND; filed Jan. 3, 2019; terminated Mar. 29, 2019) – no settlement.
• Jones v. Univar Inc (1:18‑cv‑00596, GAND; filed Feb. 8, 2018; terminated Mar. 11, 2019) – no settlement.
• Cunningham v. Fulton County Georgia (1:16‑cv‑00533, GAND; filed Feb. 19, 2016; terminated Mar. 29, 2019) – no settlement.
• Webb v. CVS Caremark Corporation (5:11‑cv‑00106, GAMD; filed Mar. 16, 2011; terminated Feb. 7, 2012) – no settlement.

None of these lawsuits are alleged by any available source to concern prison deaths or conditions at Calhoun State Prison during Scott’s tenure.

Sources

• GPS personnel and death‑tracking records – 28 deaths attributed to Calhoun State Prison during Scott’s deputy warden tenure.
• Atlanta Journal-Constitution – multiple homicide reports and coverage of the DOJ investigation into GDC, including systemic failures at Calhoun SP.
• WALB – family allegations regarding the death of Willie Andrew Willis Jr. and DOJ findings on underreporting and denial of care.
• U.S. Department of Justice (findings cited in AJC and WALB) – investigation documenting underreporting of homicides, dehydration death, classification failures, and staff shortages.
• CourtListener (court records) – six civil cases naming Tracey Scott as a defendant.

Synthesized by GPS Intelligence System on May 31, 2026 from positions, attributed deaths, lawsuits, intel reports, and news mentions in the public corpus. The supporting data tables follow below.