MACON, Ga. — Four prison guards at Macon's Central State Prison ended up behind bars and out of a job, the Georgia Department of Corrections confirms.
They say the guards — Tyrell Williams, Nelson Whitlow, Shanella Jones and April Ramsey — were fired and charged with violating their oath after failing to stop an assault on an inmate.
"The individuals are accused of violating their oath by intentionally failing to act during an assault on an offender," GDC Communications Director Joan Heath said in a statement.
Each of the guards has been with the GDC since 2022, and they were each fired by the department on Sept. 10. They were all booked into the Bibb County jail.
Their records with POST, which oversees certification and some disciplinary records for law enforcement officers, show that their work at Central State Prison was their first job in law enforcement in Georgia.
However, Ramsey — who joined the GDC in 2022 — was also employed in 2023 as a part-time jailor with the Bibb County Sheriff's Office. The sheriff's office confirmed that they terminated her part-time employment once they learned of her arrest in the Central State Prison incident.
The GDC says that the four guards' actions don't reflect the standards of the department, and they reaffirmed that employees who violate their oath will be addressed and "brought to justice."
In a statement, the GDC said: "As we continue to demonstrate, we maintain a zero-tolerance policy for individuals who choose to ignore their oath and jeopardize our non-negotiable mission of public safety. Those that do not live up to this oath – regardless of rank – are terminated immediately and brought to justice. The actions of these individuals do not reflect the hundreds of Officers who are committed to ensuring the safety of the public and the safe operations of our facilities."
Because the case is under investigation, they say no additional information is available at this time.
13WMAZ has filed an open records request with the Georgia Department of Corrections for records relating to this incident, but we are waiting to hear back.
