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Smith, Tarmarshe A
Status: active
Profile written August 30, 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
Tarmarshe A. Smith began GDC service as a correctional officer at Georgia State Prison in 2002, later holding a correctional administration post in 2015. His facility leadership track ran through Smith State Prison as deputy warden in 2016–2017, Calhoun State Prison as deputy warden in 2018 and warden in 2019, then Macon State Prison as Warden 1 in 2020 and Warden 3 from 2021 through June 2023. Afterward, GPS records show he moved into regional administration, including assistant regional director for the Southeast and later Southeast regional director roles.
GPS records attribute 36 deaths to Smith’s facility-leader tenure, all at Macon State Prison. Court records list him as a defendant in multiple federal lawsuits, though no settlement or judgment amounts are recorded.
What happened on their watch
Georgia State Prison, Smith State Prison, Calhoun State Prison
GPS records show no deaths attributed to Smith’s 2002 correctional officer role at Georgia State Prison, his deputy warden tenure at Smith State Prison, or his deputy warden and warden tenure at Calhoun State Prison.
Macon State Prison (January 2020 – June 2023)
During Smith’s time as Warden 1 and later Warden 3 at Macon State Prison, GPS records attribute 36 deaths to the facility. The individual death records provided for this tenure span from January 4, 2020 to April 27, 2023.
Several decedents are documented in Atlanta Journal-Constitution Georgia Prison Homicides Investigation notes with homicidal injury causes. Examples include Carlos Sabino Ramos, 34, multiple stab wounds; James Cornelius McLeroy, 26, stab wounds to torso; Kendrick Milike Brown, 25, blunt force head injury; Bobby Edward Lee, 38, ligature strangulation; Carrington Jwon Frye, 23, stab wounds to neck and chest; and Cody Dustin Silvers, 39, asphyxia. Other death records carry GDC classifications of “Natural” or “Suicide” from the UCLA Law Behind Bars Data Project custodial mortality dataset, which the project obtained from GDC through an open records request; those classifications come from the Department’s own coding and are not autopsy findings.
Family allegations tied to these deaths appear in AJC reporting. According to the AJC, Frye’s mother alleged that after her son was stabbed, he bled for more than half an hour before help arrived. A federal lawsuit alleged Bobby Edward Lee was strangled by a cellmate who had previously killed someone, citing understaffing and indifference by prison officials. The AJC also reported that Kendrick Brown’s mother alleged he was placed in a cell with a prisoner known to be dangerous shortly before his scheduled release.
A U.S. Department of Justice investigation covering 2018–2023, as documented in GPS records, found 142 deaths in GDC prisons and described an “environment of fear and complacency.” At Macon State Prison specifically, the DOJ report stated that four gang members ran past an officer to the kitchen area and fatally stabbed a prisoner, indicating a failure to prevent the assault.
Lawsuits filed while Smith held warden roles at Macon include Whiting v. Tarmarshe Smith (N.D. Ga., filed March 2021), Clayton v. Ward (M.D. Ga., filed January 2021), Cox v. Ward (M.D. Ga., filed January 2022), Gillis v. Saldana (M.D. Ga., filed May 2022), and Clark v. Troutman (M.D. Ga., filed July 2022).
Litigation
According to CourtListener dockets:
- Gilmore v. Georgia Department of Corrections, 6:18-cv-00115, S.D. Ga., filed Nov. 20, 2018; terminated Jan. 20, 2023.
- Clayton v. Ward, 1:21-cv-00025, M.D. Ga., filed Jan. 29, 2021; terminated Feb. 11, 2022.
- Whiting v. Tarmarshe Smith, 1:21-cv-00973, N.D. Ga., filed Mar. 8, 2021; terminated Sep. 2, 2021.
- Cox v. Ward, 5:22-cv-00008, M.D. Ga., filed Jan. 5, 2022; terminated Aug. 10, 2023.
- Gillis v. Saldana, 5:22-cv-00177, M.D. Ga., filed May 9, 2022; terminated Dec. 26, 2024.
- Clark v. Troutman, 5:22-cv-00253, M.D. Ga., filed Jul. 12, 2022; terminated Sep. 5, 2023.
- Tucker v. Wellpath Llc, 5:24-cv-00215, M.D. Ga., filed Jul. 3, 2024; pending.
- Tucker v. Holt, 5:24-cv-00360, M.D. Ga., filed Oct. 16, 2024; terminated Jun. 11, 2025.
- Daker v. Oliver Filing Restriction Per 59 Order, 1:25-cv-03191, N.D. Ga., filed Jun. 6, 2025; terminated Mar. 30, 2026.
- Mckenzie v. Oliver, 4:26-cv-00108, N.D. Ga., filed Apr. 28, 2026; pending.
No settlement or judgment amounts are recorded in the provided data.
Sources
- Atlanta Journal-Constitution — Georgia Prison Homicides Investigation reporting on Macon State Prison deaths and family allegations.
- U.S. Department of Justice investigation into GDC, as documented in GPS records.
- UCLA Law Behind Bars Data Project custodial mortality dataset, obtained from GDC via open records and cited in GPS death records.
- CourtListener federal district court dockets for the cases listed above.
- GPS records — position history, death attribution figures, facility intel reports, and incident logs.
Positions Held
| Title | Facility | Tenure |
|---|---|---|
| Region Director | 2026-08-27 → present | |
| Southeast Regional Director | 2025-10-01 → present | |
| ASSISTANT REGION DIRECTOR | 2024-01-01 → present | |
| Assistant Regional Director for the Southeast | 2023-07-01 → present | |
| WARDEN 3 | MACON STATE PRISON | 2021-01-01 → 2023-06-30 |
| WARDEN 1 | MACON STATE PRISON | 2020-01-01 → 2020-12-31 |
| WARDEN 1 | CALHOUN STATE PRISON | 2019-01-01 → 2019-12-31 |
| DEPUTY WARDEN | CALHOUN STATE PRISON | 2018-01-01 → 2018-12-31 |
| DEPUTY WARDEN | SMITH STATE PRISON | 2016-01-01 → 2017-12-31 |
| CORRECTION ADMINISTRATION | 2015-01-01 → 2015-12-31 | |
| Correctional Officer | GEORGIA STATE PRISON | 2002-01-01 → 2002-12-31 |
Lawsuits as defendant
| Case # | Court | Filed | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4:26-cv-00108 | GAND | 2026-04-28 | pending |
| 1:25-cv-03191 | GAND | 2025-06-06 | terminated |
| 5:24-cv-00360 | GAMD | 2024-10-16 | terminated |
| 5:24-cv-00215 | GAMD | 2024-07-03 | pending |
| 5:22-cv-00253 | GAMD | 2022-07-12 | terminated |
| 5:22-cv-00177 | GAMD | 2022-05-09 | terminated |
| 5:22-cv-00008 | GAMD | 2022-01-05 | terminated |
| 1:21-cv-00973 | GAND | 2021-03-08 | terminated |
| 1:21-cv-00025 | GAMD | 2021-01-29 | terminated |
| 6:18-cv-00115 | GASD | 2018-11-20 | terminated |
Deaths attributed during tenure
36 people died at facilities under Smith, Tarmarshe A's leadership.
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