Former Dooly State Prison Cadet Gets 10 Years for Trying to Smuggle Meth Into Prison

MACON, Ga. – A former Georgia correctional officer cadet has been sentenced to 10 years in federal prison after authorities caught him trying to smuggle 640 grams of pure methamphetamine into Dooly State Prison for an inmate.

Julius Deshawn Williams Jr., 29, of Bonaire, was sentenced Aug. 19 to 120 months in prison followed by five years of supervised release. He pleaded guilty Dec. 1, 2025, to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine.

Williams was training to become a correctional officer at Dooly State Prison when the drugs were discovered June 24, 2024, according to federal prosecutors.

Georgia Department of Corrections officers were conducting a required security check of people entering the prison when they found four packages containing methamphetamine wrapped in black tape and hidden in Williams’ pants, prosecutors said.

Officers then searched his vehicle and discovered four additional packages of methamphetamine wrapped in black electrical tape, along with a pistol.

Williams admitted that he intended to take the drugs inside the prison and give them to an inmate, according to statements referenced in federal court.

Testing determined the packages contained a combined 640 grams, or about 1.4 pounds, of methamphetamine with 100% purity.

U.S. District Judge C. Ashley Royal imposed the sentence. There is no parole in the federal prison system.

The Drug Enforcement Administration and Georgia Department of Corrections investigated the case.