Thompson, Melissa

Tenure Summary

Melissa Thompson has worked within the Georgia Department of Corrections since at least 2015, rising from a general corrections administration role through deputy-level positions (Correctional Assistant Superintendent, 2016–2018) before ascending to Correctional Superintendent by 2019 — a rank she has held continuously through at least early 2026. GPS records show one death attributed to a facility during her tenure as a facility-lead: that of Rhianna Woods at Whitworth Women's Facility on January 10, 2025. No lawsuits naming Thompson as a defendant, no intel reports, and no news mentions appear in GPS records.

What Happened on Their Watch

Whitworth Women's Facility — Correctional Superintendent (2025–present)

GPS records show Thompson held the Correctional Superintendent role at Whitworth Women's Facility when Rhianna Woods died there on January 10, 2025. The notes attached to the record list the cause category as "Acute Respiratory Failure / Possible Drug Overdose." Woods's age at death is not recorded in GPS records. No lawsuit has been filed in connection with this death, per GPS records, and no intel reports or news coverage of the incident appear in the current dataset. The facility assignment for Thompson's earlier superintendent years (2019–2024) is not identified in GPS records; accordingly, no deaths can be attributed to a specific facility for that period.

Sources

• GPS personnel and payroll records — career history and salary data for Thompson, Melissa (ID 4200)
• GPS death-during-tenure records — Whitworth Women's Facility, incident date January 10, 2025 (decedent: Rhianna Woods; cause category 5: Acute Respiratory Failure / Possible Drug Overdose)

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