Home › Intelligence › Personnel Accountability › Thompson, Melissa
Thompson, Melissa
Status: active
Profile written August 2, 2026
Salary
$77,630
2025 · state payroll
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
GPS records trace Melissa Thompson’s career in the Georgia Department of Corrections from a staff-level Correction Administration role in 2015, through postings as Correctional Assistant Superintendent (2016–2018), and finally a long run as Correctional Superintendent beginning in 2019. Though the earlier positions lack a specific facility assignment in the database, she is documented as Superintendent at Whitworth Women’s Facility from January 2025 forward. During her leadership tenure at that facility, one death was attributed to her watch: the January 2025 death of Rhianna Woods. No lawsuits, intelligence reports, or news mentions name Thompson in connection with any facility.What happened on their watch
Whitworth Women’s Facility (Superintendent, Jan. 2025 – present) One death occurred at the facility while Thompson held the role of Superintendent. Per GPS records, Rhianna Woods died on January 10, 2025. The Georgia Department of Corrections’ official mortality report for that month lists the cause as “Acute Respiratory Failure/ Possible Drug Overdose.” The DeKalb County Medical Examiner’s case (25-0059) determined the manner of death as accident due to acute drug (benzodiazepine) intoxication. A facility discrepancy appears in the records: while GPS data ties the death to Whitworth Women’s Facility, the Medical Examiner placed Woods at the Metro Reentry Facility in DeKalb County, noting she had ingested a substance there and the death was investigated under DeKalb jurisdiction. An administrative note suggests GDC may sometimes record a technical transfer to Metro for an inmate near death or sent to an Atlanta-area hospital, even if the inmate never physically arrived. No other deaths, patterns, or allegations are associated with Thompson’s tenure at Whitworth Women’s Facility.Sources
- GPS records — personnel position history and death attribution for Melissa Thompson
- Georgia Department of Corrections — January 2025 mortality data PDF (official release), listing cause of death for Rhianna Woods as “Acute Respiratory Failure/ Possible Drug Overdose”
- DeKalb County Medical Examiner — case 25-0059, death certificate and investigative findings for Rhianna Woods (accidental benzodiazepine intoxication)
Positions Held
| Title | Facility | Tenure |
|---|---|---|
| CORRECTIONAL SUPERINTENDENT | WHITWORTH WOMEN’S FACILITY | 2025-01-01 → present |
| CORRECTIONAL SUPERINTENDENT | 2019-01-01 → 2024-12-31 | |
| CORRECTIONAL ASST. SUPT | 2016-01-01 → 2018-12-31 | |
| CORRECTION ADMINISTRATION | 2015-01-01 → 2015-12-31 |
Deaths attributed during tenure
1 people died at facilities under Thompson, Melissa's leadership.
| Date | Decedent | Age | Facility | Role at time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-01-10 | Rhianna Woods | — | WHITWORTH WOMEN’S FACILITY | CORRECTIONAL SUPERINTENDENT |
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