Walker, Martella L

Tenure Summary

Martella L. Walker began a GDC career at Wilcox State Prison in 2002 as a correctional officer, returned there in 2015, and rose steadily through the ranks — sergeant (2016–2017), then lieutenant (2018–2022) at an unspecified facility, then captain (2023) and unit manager (2024–September 2025), also at facilities not identified in GPS records. On September 16, 2025, Walker was appointed Deputy Warden of Security at Ware State Prison, a facility with a documented history of lethal violence predating her arrival. GPS records show seven deaths attributed to Ware State Prison during Walker's tenure in that role, spanning October 2025 through February 2026. No lawsuits name Walker as a defendant.

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What Happened on Their Watch

Ware State Prison — Deputy Warden of Security (September 16, 2025 – present)

GPS records attribute seven deaths at Ware State Prison to the period of Walker's tenure as Deputy Warden of Security. Four fall into cause category 6 (cause unspecified in available records): Michael Cohen, 68, died October 13, 2025; Marty Shawn Wright, 49, died November 13, 2025; Vernon Edward Kennedy, 70, died December 12, 2025; and Carlton Atkins Jones, 55, died January 24, 2026. Two deaths are categorized as cause category 3, consistent with homicide: Christopher Allen Barrett, 46, died December 1, 2025 — a user report sourced to Facebook alleges Barrett was killed by his cellmate while housed in segregation ("the hole"); and Christopher Henry, 48, died February 12, 2026 — GDC data lists his last known institution as Ware State Prison and his major offense as aggravated assault. Cody Humphrey, 72, died February 21, 2026, also in cause category 6.

Walker assumed this role at a facility with a well-documented violent history. According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, ten inmates were killed at Ware State Prison between July 2020 and August 2024, with multiple inmates involved in several of those homicides per GDC incident reports. GPS relay-detected intelligence reports (AI-classified, unattributed) allege multiple stabbing incidents and gang-related violence at Ware State Prison in April 2026, with at least four separate stabbing events triggering lockdowns during Walker's tenure window. Georgia Public Broadcasting reports that Narissa Wright alleges no counts or welfare checks were conducted at Ware State Prison, allowing her son's body to go undiscovered for days — an allegation predating Walker's appointment but describing conditions at the same facility. The AJC separately reported that GDC publicly described the August 1, 2020, Ware State Prison mass disturbance — which per GDC internal records involved hostage-taking, guard assaults, escape attempts, 33 homemade weapons, and a mass employee exodus — as merely a "disturbance," raising broader transparency concerns about the facility's reporting culture.

Walker's unit-supervisor postings from 2018 through mid-2025 list no facility ID in GPS records, so no facility-specific deaths or incidents can be attributed to those years.

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Sources

• Atlanta Journal-Constitution — reporting on Ware State Prison homicides (July 2020–August 2024); GDC transparency and the August 2020 mass disturbance; Georgia prison homicides outpacing prior years (2025); prison system failures and taxpayer costs
• Georgia Public Broadcasting — reporting on DOJ findings and Narissa Wright's allegation regarding welfare checks at Ware State Prison (October 2024)
• GPS records — deaths during tenure, position history, salary data, and AI-relay incident detections at Ware State Prison (April 2026)
• GDC incident report data — cause categories, inmate demographics, and multi-inmate involvement figures cited via GPS structured records
• U.S. Department of Justice — report on gang-run Georgia prisons documenting regular violence and sexual assault (referenced via AJC and GPB reporting, dated approximately 2024)

Synthesized by GPS Intelligence System on May 10, 2026 from positions, attributed deaths, lawsuits, intel reports, and news mentions in the public corpus. The supporting data tables follow below.