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Thomas, Karen
Status: active
Profile written June 7, 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
Karen Thomas has worked for the Georgia Department of Corrections since at least 2015, rising through the ranks from corrections officer to deputy warden. Her career includes multiple unit-supervisor roles—lieutenant, captain, and unit manager—from 2016 through 2023, though GPS records do not associate those postings with a specific facility. In 2024, Thomas became deputy warden at Dodge State Prison, a position she continues to hold. During her leadership tenure at that facility, GPS records attribute four in-custody deaths to Dodge State Prison, all involving men in their 50s to 70s and all documented under cause category 6. None of the litigation naming Thomas as a defendant appears to stem from those deaths or from her correctional duties.What happened on their watch
Thomas assumed the deputy warden post at Dodge State Prison on or about January 1, 2024. Four deaths occurred at the prison during her tenure, per GPS fatality records:- Kenneth Brown, 58, died on January 31, 2024.
- Sotero Uriquiza-Hernandez, 51, died on May 20, 2025.
- Joseph Chatfield, 62, died on June 13, 2025.
- Warren Peacock, 70, died on April 28, 2026.
For each of these decedents, GPS records list cause category 6; no narrative notes are provided in the dataset. No intelligence reports or news mentions document allegations against Thomas in connection with these deaths. Two additional homicides at Dodge predate her deputy warden assignment: Hezekiah Sha’Nard Cuyler, 21, died of blunt force trauma to the head on September 14, 2022, and Douglas Anthony Forts, 57, died from an acute traumatic amputation sustained in a fight on June 2, 2022. Those incidents occurred while Thomas held the rank of unit manager at an unspecified location, and they are not attributed to her leadership tenure. During her deputy warden years, two federal lawsuits were filed that name Karen Thomas as a defendant—A Philip Randolph Institute v. Raffensperger (July 2024) and In Re Consumer Vehicle Driving Data Tracking Collection (June 2024)—but neither concerns the prison or its operations.
Litigation
- A Philip Randolph Institute v. Raffensperger, No. 1:24-cv-03412 (N.D. Ga., filed July 31, 2024). Terminated March 31, 2026; no settlement amount recorded.
- In Re Consumer Vehicle Driving Data Tracking Collection, No. 1:24-md-03115 (N.D. Ga., filed June 7, 2024). Pending; no disposition.
- Willis v. Government Employees Insurance Company, No. 5:23-cv-00430 (M.D. Ga., filed Oct. 26, 2023). Terminated Jan. 23, 2026; no settlement amount recorded.
- Jackson v. White, No. 3:22-cv-00114 (S.D. Ga., filed Sept. 13, 2022). Terminated Apr. 1, 2024; no settlement amount recorded.
- Ross v. White, No. 3:22-cv-00066 (S.D. Ga., filed June 22, 2022). Terminated Oct. 12, 2022; no settlement amount recorded.
- Little v. City of Thomaston Ga, No. 5:21-cv-00394 (M.D. Ga., filed Nov. 5, 2021). Terminated Dec. 5, 2022; no settlement amount recorded.
- Martinez v. Donahue, No. 7:20-cv-00062 (M.D. Ga., filed Apr. 7, 2020). Terminated Oct. 16, 2020; no settlement amount recorded.
Sources
- Georgia Prisoners’ Speak personnel and fatality records — career history and death counts for Karen Thomas, including the four deaths attributed during her deputy warden tenure at Dodge State Prison.
- GPS intelligence event records — deaths of Hezekiah Cuyler and Douglas Forts at Dodge State Prison (2022).
- CourtListener docket entries for the seven lawsuits naming Karen Thomas as a defendant.
Positions Held
| Title | Facility | Tenure |
|---|---|---|
| DEPUTY WARDEN | DODGE STATE PRISON | 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 | 2016-01-01 → 2018-12-31 | |
| CORRECTIONS OFFICER (SP) | 2015-01-01 → 2015-12-31 |
Lawsuits as defendant
| Case # | Court | Filed | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1:24-cv-03412 | GAND | 2024-07-31 | terminated |
| 1:24-md-03115 | GAND | 2024-06-07 | pending |
| 5:23-cv-00430 | GAMD | 2023-10-26 | terminated |
| 3:22-cv-00114 | GASD | 2022-09-13 | terminated |
| 3:22-cv-00066 | GASD | 2022-06-22 | terminated |
| 5:21-cv-00394 | GAMD | 2021-11-05 | terminated |
| 7:20-cv-00062 | GAMD | 2020-04-07 | terminated |
Deaths attributed during tenure
4 people died at facilities under Thomas, Karen's leadership.
| Date | Decedent | Age | Facility | Role at time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-04-28 | WARREN PEACOCK | 70 | DODGE STATE PRISON | DEPUTY WARDEN |
| 2025-06-13 | JOSEPH CHATFIELD | 62 | DODGE STATE PRISON | DEPUTY WARDEN |
| 2025-05-20 | SOTERO URIQUIZA-HERNANDEZ | 51 | DODGE STATE PRISON | DEPUTY WARDEN |
| 2024-01-31 | KENNETH BROWN | 58 | DODGE STATE PRISON | DEPUTY WARDEN |
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