Media Coverage
Latest GDC News
Georgia’s prison system has come under sustained scrutiny from federal investigators, state consultants, and investigative reporters. This page collects recent coverage so readers can follow the crisis — and the push for reform.
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Inmate dead, several others injured after ‘altercation’ at Wilcox State Prison, coroner says – Yahoo
An inmate died and several others were injured following an altercation at Wilcox State Prison on Thursday, according to Wilcox County Coroner Janice Brown. Brown responded to the prison around 2 p.m. after the incident, which involved multiple inmates, but said she could not release the deceased inmate’s identity because family had not been notified. ...
“The GDC has become the largest taxpayer-funded gang recruitment center,” sheriff says – Yahoo
Butts County Sheriff Gary Long publicly criticized the Georgia Department of Corrections (GDC) after his office intercepted a shipment of drugs, weapons, and other contraband intended for a state prison, calling the seizure part of a continuing pattern. In a social media post, Long stated that the GDC has become “the largest taxpayer-funded gang recruitment ...
“The GDC has become the largest taxpayer-funded gang recruitment center,” sheriff says – WSB-TV
Butts County Sheriff Gary Long publicly criticized the Georgia Department of Corrections (GDC), stating in a social media post that the agency “has become the largest taxpayer-funded gang recruitment center in the state.” His remarks followed his office’s interception of another shipment of drugs, weapons, and contraband allegedly destined for a state prison, which he ...
Capitol Beat – Page 11 – WABE
1 day ago … Georgia Department of Corrections (GDC) Commissioner Tyrone Oliver told state lawmakers federal restrictions hamper. Law Enforcement · Drones a threat to … Drones a threat to Georgia prison security, state agency says Ty Tagami | Capitol Beat December 2nd, 2025 ATLANTA — Drones powerful enough to lift a human have become a routine tool ...
GDC: Gang-related fight at Wilcox State Prison leaves inmate dead – 41NBC News
An inmate died and nine others were injured following a gang-related fight at Wilcox State Prison in Abbeville, Georgia, on September 3, according to the Georgia Department of Corrections (GDC). The GDC stated the altercation was contained to one dorm and identified the deceased inmate as Maurice Brown, who was pronounced dead at the scene ...
New execution date scheduled for Georgia death row inmate – AJC.com
A new execution date has been scheduled for death row inmate Stacey Ian Humphreys, who was convicted nearly 20 years ago in the deaths of two Cobb County real estate agents, the Georgia Department of Corrections announced Thursday. The execution will take place Sept. 16 at 7 p.m. at the Georgia Diagnostic and Classification Prison ...
Apalachee High shooter’s dad, Colin Gray, gets 15 years in prison – AJC.com
Colin Gray, the father of Apalachee High School shooter Colt Gray, was sentenced Thursday to 15 years in prison for his role in Georgia’s deadliest school shooting, according to the AJC. The sentence comes two days after his son received life without parole. Colin Gray is the first Georgia parent prosecuted for a mass school ...
After more than two decades in prison, father granted new trial in son’s death – AJC.com
A Gwinnett County judge has granted a new trial to Danyel Smith, who was convicted more than two decades ago in the shaken-baby death of his 2-month-old son, Chandler. Smith has consistently maintained his innocence, and his defense team has sought to present new evidence they believe could exonerate him. In 2023, Gwinnett prosecutors offered ...
Couple imprisoned for baby’s death eligible for state payout, judge says – Atlanta Journal-Constitution
An administrative law judge ruled that Ashley Jordan and Albert Debelbot are eligible for state compensation under Georgia’s Wrongful Conviction and Incarceration Act after spending over 12 years in prison for the 2008 death of their newborn daughter. Judge Ronit Walker of the Office of State Administrative Hearings issued a 41-page opinion finding that the ...
Clayton inmate released by mistake joins long list of similar Georgia cases – Atlanta Journal-Constitution
A convicted murderer was mistakenly released from custody in Clayton County, Georgia, adding to a documented pattern of similar errors across the state. According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, law enforcement mistakes have allowed both convicted individuals and pretrial detainees to walk free in multiple Georgia jurisdictions. The article notes that two such incidents have occurred ...
After More Than 20 Years in Prison, Georgia Man Wins New Trial in “Shaken Baby” Case
A Georgia court has ordered a new trial for Danyel Smith, who was convicted in 2003 of killing his two-month-old son in a case that relied on a Shaken Baby Syndrome (SBS) diagnosis. Gwinnett County Superior Court Judge Kimberly A. Gallant ruled that evolving scientific research on SBS, also known as Abusive Head Trauma, constitutes ...
Incarcerated People Lose Treasured Media When Prisons Change Tablet Contracts
A proposed class-action lawsuit filed in March 2026 alleges that the Tennessee Department of Correction violated the Fifth Amendment’s Takings Clause by confiscating tablets from incarcerated people and failing to transfer purchased digital content—including music, emails, and photographs—after switching tablet vendors from JPay to ViaPath. The complaint states that under the new contract, TDOC receives ...
Trans People Behind Bars Face Great Risks. Prison Officials Are Making It Worse.
A new article from The Appeal and Truthout reports that incarcerated transgender people face heightened risks of violence and discrimination, with prison policies often exacerbating these dangers. The piece highlights the case of Gia Valentina, a transgender woman in New Jersey who was denied transfer to a women’s prison after undergoing gender-affirming surgery, leaving her ...
A Court Found Conditions at Louisiana’s Prison Farm Unconstitutional. It Let Them Continue Anyway.
A federal judge ruled that conditions on the Farm Line at Louisiana State Penitentiary (Angola), where incarcerated workers are forced to labor in extreme heat for as little as zero to four cents an hour, violate the Eighth Amendment’s ban on cruel and unusual punishment. However, citing a recent Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals decision ...
Families of Victims Who Died From Heat in Prison Fight to Prevent More Deaths
A recent article highlights the push for Adrienne’s Act in California, which would mandate cooling systems and heat-relief protocols in state prisons following the 2024 heat-related death of incarcerated woman Adrienne Boulware. The bill, which has passed committee stages, would require the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to implement plans for cooled living quarters, ...
Shackled for weeks: Federal report finds abuse of restraints in prisons – Georgia Public Broadcasting
A new Justice Department Inspector General report found that the federal Bureau of Prisons violated its own rules by excessively restraining prisoners, including cases where an individual died after being shackled for over two days and another required a limb amputation due to restraints being applied too tightly. The report reviewed six years of records ...
Too few guards and too many drones: Georgia prisons leaders alert lawmakers to dangers
Credit: Sofi Gratas/GPB News Section Branding Header Content Too few guards and too many drones: Georgia prisons leaders alert lawmakers to dangers Primary Content LISTEN: While the number of prison guards in Georgia prisons is at a 15-year low, corrections officials say the number of people incarcerated in the state is at a 15-year high ...
Gov. Kemp recommends adding $372 million to shore up Georgia prisons – Georgia Public Broadcasting
Credit: Grant Blankenship/GPB News Section Branding Header Content Gov. Kemp recommends adding $372 million to shore up Georgia prisons Primary Content Gov. Brian Kemp has released his recommendations for strengthening Georgia’s struggling prison system, which include an additional $372 million in state spending. “We do realize and recognize that this is — I don’t know ...
State prisons chief pitches case for funding boost – Georgia Public Broadcasting
ATLANTA — Georgia Department of Corrections officials began laying the groundwork Wednesday for an infusion of state funding to beef up staffing, replace aging infrastructure, and improve inmate health care. The state’s workforce of correctional officers plummeted during the COVID pandemic and has yet to fully recover, Georgia Commissioner of Corrections Tyrone Oliver told members ...
The federal Department of Justice: ‘deliberate indifference’ to violence in Georgia prisons – Georgia Public Broadcasting
Credit: Grant Blankenship/GPB News Section Branding Header Content The federal Department of Justice: ‘deliberate indifference’ to violence in Georgia prisons Primary Content LISTEN: After a yearslong investigation, the Department of Justice says violence in Georgia prisons is at a “crisis level.” GPB’s Grant Blankenship reports. In a blistering, just-released report years in the making, the ...
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Fish Tanks, Plants and Podcast Studios — Some States Try a New Approach to Incarceration
Several U.S. states, including Pennsylvania and California, are piloting or expanding prison units modeled on Nordic approaches that prioritize rehabilitation over punishment, featuring elements like plants, fish tanks, and vocational training. Pennsylvania announced it will expand its “Little Scandinavia” unit from SCI Chester to three additional facilities after a study showed only one physical altercation ...
Rats, Insects and Mold: How Bad Food Leaves Prisoners Hungry and Sick
This is The Marshall Project’s Closing Argument newsletter, a weekly deep dive into a key criminal justice issue. Want this delivered to your inbox? Sign up for future newsletters. The food on the trays doesn’t even look like food. In photos smuggled out of Georgia’s prisons, what passes for a meal is either grossly inadequate ...
Crime Laws: How Louisiana, Georgia, Other States Embrace ‘Tough-on-Crime
This is The Marshall Project’s Closing Argument newsletter, a weekly deep dive into a key criminal justice issue. Want this delivered to your inbox? Subscribe to future newsletters here. For decades, Louisiana had the nation’s highest rate of incarceration. And — given that the U.S. is among the most carceral countries on the planet — ...
Data Reveals Prison Crisis: More Prisoners, Fewer Correctional Officers
When Andrew Phillips took a job as a corrections officer at Georgia’s Smith State Prison in 2021, he was desperate for work. Shortly after he started, he noticed a problem. The prison housed about 1,500 men, and each shift was supposed to have 30 officers to guard them, but most days there were half that, ...
As Corrections Officers Quit in Droves, Prisons Get Even More Dangerous
At a Georgia state House of Representatives hearing on prison conditions in September, a corrections officer called in to testify, interrupting his shift to tell lawmakers how dire conditions had become. On a “good day,” he told lawmakers, he had maybe six or seven officers to supervise roughly 1,200 people. He said he had recently ...
Inmate dead, several others injured after ‘altercation’ at Wilcox State Prison, coroner says – Yahoo
An inmate died and several others were injured following an altercation at Wilcox State Prison on Thursday, according to Wilcox County Coroner Janice Brown. Brown responded to the prison around 2 p.m. after the incident, which involved multiple inmates, but said she could not release the deceased inmate’s identity because family had not been notified. ...
“The GDC has become the largest taxpayer-funded gang recruitment center,” sheriff says – Yahoo
Butts County Sheriff Gary Long publicly criticized the Georgia Department of Corrections (GDC) after his office intercepted a shipment of drugs, weapons, and other contraband intended for a state prison, calling the seizure part of a continuing pattern. In a social media post, Long stated that the GDC has become “the largest taxpayer-funded gang recruitment ...
“The GDC has become the largest taxpayer-funded gang recruitment center,” sheriff says – WSB-TV
Butts County Sheriff Gary Long publicly criticized the Georgia Department of Corrections (GDC), stating in a social media post that the agency “has become the largest taxpayer-funded gang recruitment center in the state.” His remarks followed his office’s interception of another shipment of drugs, weapons, and contraband allegedly destined for a state prison, which he ...
Capitol Beat – Page 11 – WABE
1 day ago … Georgia Department of Corrections (GDC) Commissioner Tyrone Oliver told state lawmakers federal restrictions hamper. Law Enforcement · Drones a threat to … Drones a threat to Georgia prison security, state agency says Ty Tagami | Capitol Beat December 2nd, 2025 ATLANTA — Drones powerful enough to lift a human have become a routine tool ...
GDC: Gang-related fight at Wilcox State Prison leaves inmate dead – 41NBC News
An inmate died and nine others were injured following a gang-related fight at Wilcox State Prison in Abbeville, Georgia, on September 3, according to the Georgia Department of Corrections (GDC). The GDC stated the altercation was contained to one dorm and identified the deceased inmate as Maurice Brown, who was pronounced dead at the scene ...
ITUC Observations under Article 23 – USA C105 (Forced Labour)
1 The International Trade Union Confederation is a worldwide union network that represents 207 million workers in 163 countries and territories. ITUC’s primary mission is to promote and defend workers’ rights through international cooperation between trade unions, global campaigning and advocacy within major global institutions. Among its affiliates is the American Federation of Labor-Congress of ...
U.S. Department of Justice Findings Report on Georgia Prisons
Investigation of Georgia Prisons U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division U.S. Attorney’s Offices for the Northern, Middle, and Southern Districts of Georgia i October 1, 2024 TABLE OF CONTENTS TABLE OF CONTENTS ………………………………………………………………………….. i EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ………………………………………………………………………… 3 INTRODUCTION …………………………………………………………………………………… 4 INVESTIGATION …………………………………………………………………………………. 11 DEFICIENT CONDITIONS IDENTIFIED …………………………………………………. 14 A. The State of Georgia ...
Georgia prisoner strike comes out of lockdown
Georgia prisoner strike comes out of lockdown By Guest Blogger / December 16, 2010 Share on Twitter Submit to Reddit Share on Facebook More Linkedin Share on Google+ Share via Email By Kung Li Georgia prisoners came out of their cells today, ending the lockdown phase of the largest prison work strike in U.S. history. ...
Georgia Prisoners’ Strike: “We locked ourselves down.”
Georgia Prisoners’ Strike: “We locked ourselves down.” In a protest that appears to be spreading through Georgia’s prison system, inmates are striking for better conditions. One interesting facet of this rare prison strike, which reaches across multiple facilities and across racial and factional lines, is the participants’ use of self-imposed lockdown to serve their own ...
Georgia Prison Strike: A Hidden Labor Force Resists
Last week a diverse group of nonviolent protesters across Georgia stood up for their rights, calling for decent wages, better social services and respect for their civil liberties. It didn’t take long for the government to crack down on the demonstrations, however: the protesters were already in prison. The uprising of Georgia inmates on December ...
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