Jackson Progress-Argus

Photo by Rebecca Long

From Staff Reports

A new warden will soon take over at the state prison in Jackson.

Georgia Department of Corrections Commissioner Brian Owens announced the appointment of Carl Humphrey as warden of the Georgia Diagnostic and Classification Prison effective Dec. 16. The prison, on Ga. Highway 36 near Interstate 75, houses 2,089 male inmates and is the home of Georgia's death row.

"Warden Humphrey has risen through the ranks since joining the department 26 years ago," Owens said in a statement. "I am confident his training and experience will serve him well at his new facility."

Humphrey joined the Department of Corrections in 1984 as a correctional officer at Georgia State Prison, the department said in a news release. He has also served as a K-9 sergeant, instructor, lieutenant, captain, assistant superintendent and deputy warden of security. Humphrey was promoted to warden at Rutledge State Prison in 1999 and most recently served as warden at Baldwin State Prison, the department said.

The Georgia Diagnostic and Classification Prison is a maximum-security prison which opened in 1968. According to the corrections department web site, it has eight cell blocks with single and double-bunked cells, eight dormitories and a medical unit.

It is also the location where Georgia's death row inmates are housed, and where death sentences are carried out.

Its outgoing warden, Steve Upton, has been named the field operations manager for the Georgia Department of Corrections in the Southwest region of the state, effective Dec. 16.

The department said Upton will provide guidance, coaching and mentoring to the wardens and superintendents in his jurisdiction.

"The department is honored to see Steve rise through the ranks to become a field operations manager," Owens, the department's commissioner, said. "I am confident his experience will benefit the wardens and superintendents in his region."

Upton joined the corrections department as an officer at Hays State Prison in 1991 and has also served as sergeant, lieutenant, unit manager and superintendent. He has been the warden at the Jackson prison since July 2009.