After ending a record year for inmate suicides, the Georgia Department of Corrections said three inmates have apparently killed themselves within 2 1/2 weeks, two on the same day, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. The Department of Corrections is investigating all three deaths as apparent suicides. Two deaths occurred early on Sunday. Andrew Garland, serving a 10-year sentence for a 2016 aggravated stalking and five years for the same crime committed in 2017, was found in his cell around 1:15 a.m. at Rogers State Prison in southeast Georgia. On Sunday, at 2:50 a.m., Christopher Mauldin was found dead in his cell at Phillips State Prison in Buford. Mauldin was in prison for two burglary convictions.
The first apparent state inmate suicide of this year was on Jan. 13 at Hays State Prison in Summerville in northwest Georgia. Cecil Williams, serving 10 years for a 2015 robbery by intimidation, was found unresponsive in his cell at 1:09 a.m. “Along with having policies in place that direct employees on the proper monitoring of offenders who are believed to be suicidal, [the corrections department] is in the process of developing an awareness campaign for use in communicating to the offender population,” said Department of Corrections spokeswoman Joan Heath. “We work diligently to identify practices that will improve our ability to thwart suicide attempts. We have been, and remain, committed to the safety and security of all offenders.”