Dooly State Prison

Dooly State Prison allows inmates visitation days on Saturdays, Sundays, and state holidays.^[9] Visitors must be an immediate family member or another person that the inmate has placed on a visitors list. Special visits are allowed if there are special circumstances but must be approved by the warden at least 48 hours in advance. Visitors should schedule and confirm an appointment prior to their visit. The only personal items permitted during visitation is one car key and an identity document. Dress code for all visitors are long sleeve shirts with no writings or drawings, no gym wear, if sandals are worn there must be straps on the back; basic colors such as white or gray are best.

In 1996 eleven prisoners filed a lawsuit against the Dooly State Prison guards. They alleged that the guards “engaged in sadistic and degrading abuse”. However, due to the passage of the Prison Litigation Reform Act which states that “no federal action may be brought by a prisoner for mental or emotional injury suffered while in custody, without a prior showing of physical injury” the lawsuit was rejected in an “8-4 ruling” by the federal appeals court in Atlanta.^[10][11]

In February 2014, inmate Mitchell Lavern Ludy, serving a life sentence for murder, placed a lawsuit against the institution stating that he was denied kosher food during Passover. Ludy asserted he was raised a Jew and claimed he was “a victim of religious persecution and mental and emotional distress” as a consequence of being denied the ability to celebrate the holiday. Officers argued that he was not allowed kosher food due to the section of the prison in which he was housed. Ludy, however, declared that “a memo was distributed saying Muslims housed in the same area could observe their holy month” He also declared in his statement that he previously told officers about replacing his food before the actual holiday date so they could take measures in doing so when the time came. Ludy placed his lawsuit for $16 million but in May 2016, signed an agreement to settle the case for $200.^[12][13]

In February 2016, Dooly was one of nine Georgia state prisons implicated in an FBI sting operation. This operation led to the indictment of 46 correctional officers on federal charges, ten of whom were Dooly State Prison employees. During the raid, FBI officers found contraband inside the prison such as “cellphones, weapons and drugs”, much of which was illegally brought inside the prison by the officers.^[14]

32°16′51″N 83°43′01″W / 32.280768°N 83.716926°W / 32.280768; -83.716926