West, Sandi R

Tenure Summary

Sandi R. West began her career with the Georgia Department of Corrections in 2003 as a Sergeant at Smith State Prison and rose through unit‑supervisor and deputy‑warden roles at multiple facilities over two decades. In January 2024 she was promoted to Warden 1 at Rogers State Prison, and in June of that year her title changed to Warden, a position she has held since. During West’s leadership tenure at Rogers, GPS records attribute six deaths to the facility. A federal lawsuit, Williams v. West, was filed against her in 2025 and remains pending; an earlier case, Jackson v. Catanzariti in which she was named as a defendant, was terminated in 2023.

What happened on their watch

West’s time at Rogers State Prison as Warden began on January 1, 2024. Six people died in the facility while she was the facility lead, all recorded in GPS records. The first, Shawn Remar Johnson (34), died on July 23, 2024; his cause is classified under category 6, for which no further detail is provided in the structured data. Taylor Anthony Hunt (29) died on September 27, 2024, also under cause category 6. GPS intelligence reports contain multiple allegations that Hunt’s death, officially ruled a suicide by GDC, showed evidence inconsistent with that finding—claims of ligature marks, broken bones, bruises, and puncture and stab wounds—suggesting a potential homicide. These allegations remain unconfirmed in official records provided here.

In 2025, four deaths were recorded. David Woods (age not listed) died on February 4; coroner records list his manner as natural, caused by atherosclerotic and hypertensive heart disease complicated by influenza A and parainfluenza virus. Justin Waymon Hollingsworth (43) died on June 26; coroner and GBI records confirm a suicide by hanging in his cell. Randy Eugene Stewart (60) died on July 17; a coroner record shows the cause was E. coli peritonitis from a perforated duodenum, with contributing conditions including diabetes, hypertension, cirrhosis, and chronic hepatitis C; the manner was natural. The coroner’s documentation notes that Warden Sandi West was recorded as the family‑notification contact. John Meeks (49) died on February 19, 2026, once again under cause category 6; no additional detail is available.

Thus, of the six deaths, two were natural, one suicide, and three fall under a cause category that suggests the manner may be pending or undetermined. Allegations concerning Hunt’s death, if substantiated, would mark a stark anomaly amid the facility’s recorded fatalities.

Litigation

• Williams v. West, No. 1:25‑cv‑02109 (N.D. Ga., filed Apr. 16, 2025) – pending.
• Jackson v. Catanzariti, No. 6:12‑cv‑00113 (S.D. Ga., filed Dec. 10, 2012, terminated Jun. 28, 2023) – West is listed as a defendant; outcome unknown.

Sources

• GPS personnel and tenure records for Sandi R. West
• GPS deaths‑by‑facility and deaths‑during‑tenure logs for Rogers State Prison
• Coroner records (Tattnall County) for Stewart, Hollingsworth, and Woods (loaded in GPS Wave 1, May 2026)
• GPS intelligence reports alleging suspicious circumstances in the death of Taylor Hunt
• U.S. District Court dockets via CourtListener for Williams v. West and Jackson v. Catanzariti

Synthesized by GPS Intelligence System on May 31, 2026 from positions, attributed deaths, lawsuits, intel reports, and news mentions in the public corpus. The supporting data tables follow below.