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Whittington, Lawrence R
Status: active
Profile written August 23, 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
Lawrence R. Whittington served in Georgia Department of Corrections roles from at least 2015 through 2023. GPS records show him in correction administration in 2015, as a correctional unit manager in 2016, as deputy warden from 2017 through 2020, and as Warden at Wilcox State Prison from Dec. 1, 2020 until Jan. 14, 2023. GPS records attribute 10 deaths to Whittington’s facility-leader tenure, all at Wilcox State Prison. No lawsuits naming Whittington as a defendant appear in the extracted records. The 10 deaths include one coroner-certified homicide, one suicide, two accidental drug toxicities, one death with conflicting family and coroner accounts, and several natural deaths.What happened on their watch
Wilcox State Prison — Warden (Dec. 1, 2020–Jan. 14, 2023)
During Whittington’s warden tenure at Wilcox State Prison, GPS records attribute 10 deaths to the facility. According to Wilcox County Coroner records and GBI medical-examiner records, the deaths unfolded across 2021, 2022, and early 2023. In 2021: Larry E. Sharp, 62, died Feb. 10 of cardiac tamponade from metastatic lung cancer; Christopher Chron Parker, 45, died Apr. 24 of coronary atherosclerosis after collapsing on work duty; Mark Antonio Calcaterra, 44, died Sept. 6 — a GPS family-sourced account attributes the death to diabetic ketoacidosis and medical neglect, while the Wilcox County Coroner ruled the manner natural from acute respiratory distress syndrome due to COVID-19; Tony Royce Smith, 56, died Sept. 11 of accidental fentanyl intoxication in an open dorm, with the death undiscovered for about 10 hours; and Corey Dewberry, 37, died Oct. 22 by suicide by hanging in his cell after being moved to solitary confinement following self-harm statements, per a GBI autopsy. In 2022: Kelvin Lowe, 58, died May 27 of natural portal-vein thrombosis; Clayton Wesley Carleton, 67, died Aug. 10 of natural complications from ischemic bowel and pharyngeal cancer; James Forest Williams, 43, died Oct. 3 of blunt and sharp force injuries to the head, torso, and extremities, a death the coroner ruled homicide; and Kemarrio Laquan Clark, 39, died Dec. 28 of natural hypertension due to diabetes and obesity after collapsing in the prison kitchen. In 2023, Robert Mitchell Woodland, 38, died Jan. 7 of accidental combined toxic effects of methamphetamine and diltiazem at Taylor Regional Hospital.
One record flags a cause-coding dispute: the Wilcox County Coroner ruled Tony Royce Smith’s death accidental from fentanyl intoxication, but the Georgia Department of Corrections’ own coding, obtained by the UCLA Law Behind Bars Data Project through an open records request, listed the death as natural. GPS records retain the coroner’s classification.
GPS intelligence files contain allegations about Wilcox State Prison, including a public Facebook post alleging movement lockdowns during staff gatherings and lapses in basic inmate supply issuance, and Atlanta Journal-Constitution reporting on gang influence, contraband smuggling, and mental-health failures. None of those intelligence records is dated within Whittington’s Dec. 2020–Jan. 2023 warden tenure, and no lawsuit naming Whittington as a defendant appears in the extracted records.
Sources
- GPS personnel and death records
- Wilcox County Coroner Janice B. Brown case records, 2021–2023
- GBI Medical Examiner’s Office, DOFS 2021-4004837 autopsy report for Corey Dewberry
- Atlanta Journal-Constitution — Georgia prison homicides investigation and related coverage
- UCLA Law Behind Bars Data Project — GDC cause-coding records obtained via open records request
- GPS published account, Sept. 13, 2021, for the Mark Antonio Calcaterra family report
Positions Held
| Title | Facility | Tenure |
|---|---|---|
| WARDEN 1 | 2021-01-01 → 2023-12-31 | |
| Warden | WILCOX STATE PRISON | 2020-12-01 → 2023-01-14 |
| DEPUTY WARDEN | 2017-01-01 → 2020-12-31 | |
| CORRECTIONAL UNIT MANAGER | 2016-01-01 → 2016-12-31 | |
| CORRECTION ADMINISTRATION | 2015-01-01 → 2015-12-31 |
Deaths attributed during tenure
10 people died at facilities under Whittington, Lawrence R's leadership.
| Date | Decedent | Age | Facility | Role at time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023-01-07 | ROBERT MITCHELL WOODLAND | 38 | WILCOX STATE PRISON | Warden |
| 2022-12-28 | KEMARRIO LAQUAN CLARK | 39 | WILCOX STATE PRISON | Warden |
| 2022-10-03 | JAMES FOREST WILLIAMS | 43 | WILCOX STATE PRISON | Warden |
| 2022-08-10 | CLAYTON WESLEY CARLETON | 67 | WILCOX STATE PRISON | Warden |
| 2022-05-27 | KELVIN LOWE | 58 | WILCOX STATE PRISON | Warden |
| 2021-10-22 | COREY DEWBERRY | 37 | WILCOX STATE PRISON | Warden |
| 2021-09-11 | TONY ROYCE SMITH | 56 | WILCOX STATE PRISON | Warden |
| 2021-09-06 | MARK ANTONIO CALCATERRA | 44 | WILCOX STATE PRISON | Warden |
| 2021-04-24 | CHRISTOPHER CHRON PARKER | 45 | WILCOX STATE PRISON | Warden |
| 2021-02-10 | LARRY E SHARP | 62 | WILCOX STATE PRISON | Warden |
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