O.C.G.A.
Code text and O.C.G.A. statutory annotations on this page reflect the 2019 Official Code of Georgia Annotated (Public.Resource.Org Release 73, 2019-08-21; public domain per Georgia v. Public.Resource.Org, 2020). The Syfert case-law annotations in Notes of Decisions, below, are current.
(a) It shall be unlawful for any person to come inside the guard lines established at any state or county correctional institution with a gun, pistol, or any other weapon or with or under the influence of any
STATE/COUNTY CORRECTIONAL INST.
intoxicating liquor, amphetamines, biphetamines, or any other hallucinogenic or other drugs, without the knowledge or consent of the warden, superintendent, or his or her designated representative. (b) Any person who violates this Code section shall be guilty of a felony and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished by imprisonment for not less than one year nor more than four years.
History
Ga. L. 1903, p. 71, § 1; Penal Code 1910, § 1232; Code 1933, § 77-404; Ga. L. 1961, p. 45, § 1; Ga. L. 1971, p. 220, § 1; Ga. L. 2017, p. 673, § 3-2/SB 149. Administrative rules and regulations. Departmental Operations, Official Com-
pilation of the Rules and Regulations of the State of Georgia, Board of Corrections, Chapter 125-2. Institutional and Center Operations, Official Compilation of the Rules and Regulations of the State of Georgia, Board of Corrections, Chapter 125-3.
Annotations
JUDICIAL DECISIONS Trial court erred dismissing indictment. - Trial court erred dismissing an indictment against the defendant charging furnishing prohibited items to an inmate and crossing guard lines with drugs because the only evidence regarding the content of missing video footage was that it showed defendant’s commission of charged crimes and was therefore inculpatory, and the record did not show any exculpatory value of footage was apparent before the video became unavailable. State v. Newberry, 366 Ga. App. 567, 883 S.E.2d 581, 2023 Ga. App. LEXIS 43 (2023). Sufficient evidence prison guard intended to distribute drugs in prison. - Evidence supported convictions of possession of cocaine with intent to distribute, possession of marijuana with intent to distribute, and crossing a prison guard
line with drugs when the defendant, a corrections officer, was found with a cookie box containing drugs. Although the defendant claimed to be unaware of the contents of the package, none of the people the defendant named as being involved in the transaction were proven to exist, and the jury was authorized to infer that it was unreasonable for a corrections officer to take a suspicious package from an unknown person into a prison to give to an unknown recipient; furthermore, given the large amount and variety of contraband, its high street value, and that the defendant was taking it inside a heavily guarded prison facility, the jury was authorized to infer that the defendant intended to distribute the drugs to others instead of using the drugs personally. Bradley v. State, 292 Ga. App. 737, 665 S.E.2d 428, 2008 Ga. App. LEXIS 850 (2008).
OPINIONS OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL Correctional staff are authorized to search visitors entering or leaving correctional institutions; these searches may be conducted by regular members of the correctional staff, properly supervised and
trained; staff should conduct searches according to clear guidelines prepared for them by the Department of Offender Rehabilitation (Corrections). 1974 Op. Att’y Gen. No. 74-146.
RESEARCH REFERENCES Am. Jur. 2d. 60 Am. Jur. 2d, Penal and Correctional Institutions, § 22 et seq.
C.J.S. 72 C.J.S., Prisons and Rights of Prisoners, §§ 60 et seq., 99 et seq.
Notes of Decisions
Cited in
12
cases (
4 in the last 5 years), 1988–2026 · leading case:
The State v. Fowle., 819 S.E.2d 719 (Ga. Ct. App. 2018).
The State v. Fowle., 819 S.E.2d 719 (Ga. Ct. App. 2018).
· cites it 46× “*720 Shantel Fowle was indicted for misdemeanor possession of marijuana and crossing the guard lines 1 of a county correctional institution with drugs, in violation of OCGA § 42-5-15. Fowle moved to dismiss the charge brought under OCGA § 42-5-15, arguing that he could not be…”
Star Residential, LLC v. Hernandez, 860 S.E.2d 726 (Ga. 2021).
· cites it 4× “2 as aggravated sexual battery; (D) Any offense defined in Article 3 of Chapter 10 of this title, relating to escape and other offenses related to confinement; (E) Any offense defined in Article 4 of Chapter 11 of this title, relating to dangerous instrumentalities and…”
Bradley v. State, 665 S.E.2d 428 (Ga. Ct. App. 2008).
· cites it 4× “A Calhoun County jury found Kanoshia Bradley guilty of possession of cocaine with intent to distribute, OCGA § 16-13-30 (b); possession of marijuana with intent to distribute, OCGA § 16-13-30 (b); crossing a prison guard line with drugs, OCGA § 42-5-15 (a); and violating the…”
State v. Jefferson, 807 S.E.2d 387 (Ga. 2017).
· cites it 2× “2 as aggravated sexual battery; (D) Any offense defined in Article 3 of Chapter 10 of this title, relating to escape and other offenses related to confinement; (E) Any offense defined in Article 4 of Chapter 11 of this title, relating to dangerous instrumentalities and…”
Howard v. State, 364 S.E.2d 600 (Ga. Ct. App. 1988).
· cites it 6× “Defendant Mark Howard, a prison corrections officer, was convicted of armed robbery and aggravated assault of a former inmate, crossing of guard lines of a prison facility with drugs in violation of OCGA § 42-5-15, and possession of less than one ounce of marijuana.”
In the Matter of David Godley Rigdon, 837 S.E.2d 759 (Ga. 2020).
· cites it 2× “; and three counts of crossing the guard lines of a correctional institution with drugs, in violation of OCGA § 42-5-15. In January 2019, Rigdon pled guilty to the eight GCSA counts, with the State agreeing to nolle pros the remaining charges, and Rigdon was sentenced under OCGA…”
State v. Shantel Fowle (Ga. Ct. App. 2017).
· cites it 6× “Shantel Fowle was charged with possession of less than one ounce of marijuana (a misdemeanor) and crossing the guard line at the Fulton County Jail with marijuana and without the warden’s consent, in violation of OCGA § 42-5-15 (a felony). Fowle moved to dismiss the felony…”
State v. Jefferson (Ga. 2017).
· cites it 2× “2 as aggravated sexual battery; (D) Any offense defined in Article 3 of Chapter 10 of this title, relating to escape and other offenses related to confinement; (E) Any offense defined in Article 4 of Chapter 11 of this title, relating to dangerous instrumentalities and…”
State v. Jerrion McKinney (Ga. Ct. App. 2022).
· cites it 2× “2 as aggravated sexual battery; (D) Any offense defined in Article 3 of Chapter 10 of this title, relating to escape and other offenses related to confinement; (E) Any offense defined in Article 4 of Chapter 11 of this title, relating to dangerous instrumentalities and…”
State v. Tonya Newberry (Ga. Ct. App. 2023).
· cites it 2× “” 3 OCGA § 42-5-15 (a) provides that “[i]t shall be unlawful for any person to come inside the guard lines established at any state or county correctional institution .”
State v. Tonya Newberry (Ga. Ct. App. 2026).
· cites it 2× “1) (tobacco), and one count of crossing the 2 guard line with drugs, see OCGA § 42-5-15. In February 2022, Newberry filed a motion in limine seeking to dismiss the case on the ground that the video recording of the live feed viewed by the warden was unavailable.”
Rivers v. State, 633 S.E.2d 74 (Ga. Ct. App. 2006).
· cites it 2× “On October 18, 2004, Rivers and two other individuals were indicted by a Dooly County grand jury for crossing prison guard lines with contraband, OCGA § 42-5-15. 1 On October 28, 2004, Rivers filed both a waiver of arraignment and a demand for trial pursuant to OCGA§ 17-7-170.”
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the
Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and
treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.