A recent court filing details allegations that two prison officials failed to protect an incarcerated individual by assigning him to share a cell with an inmate known for violence, resulting in the individual’s death. The complaint was filed by Angela Hackney on March 16, 2026, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia against Monina Duncan and Kisha Kirby.
According to the document, Angela Hackney’s son, Corey Cochran, was killed by his cellmate Cody Finley at Phillips State Prison on December 17, 2024. The complaint states that just hours before the incident, Defendants Duncan and Kirby assigned Finley—a prisoner with a documented history of violence—to Cochran’s cell. The filing alleges this action violated existing policy prohibiting inmates with different security levels from being housed together.
The lawsuit outlines that at the time of the murder, Finley had been moved into Cochran’s cell less than five hours earlier. Defendant Duncan made the decision to reassign Finley and notified Unit Manager Kirby, who approved the move and sent orders through the chain of command. The document asserts both defendants were aware that Georgia Department of Corrections policy did not allow inmates with different security classifications to be housed together. Specifically, Finley was classified as “close” watch due to his assaultive history, while Cochran was classified as medium security.
The complaint describes Finley’s background in detail: “Mr. Finley came to prison after assaulting his mother in 2019 and severely injuring her eye.” It further lists multiple incidents between 2021 and early 2024 where Finley assaulted or injured other inmates—often his own cellmates—including breaking jaws, sexual assault, stabbing with weapons, and causing hospitalizations.
In contrast, Cochran is described as suffering from schizophrenia and having below average intellectual functioning. He had previously been attacked several times while incarcerated at other facilities and was considered vulnerable according to psychological evaluations: “he was assigned to a higher level of mental health care because of his hallucinations and his ‘increased vulnerability were he to be in general population.'” In November 2024—one month before his death—Cochran had been assaulted by another inmate who broke his ankle with a metal object. As a result of this prior attack, he was involuntarily transferred into administrative segregation for protection.
The filing claims that Defendants knew about both inmates’ histories as well as staffing shortages at Phillips State Prison which allegedly led to infrequent security rounds: “officers working on understaffed shifts did not perform routine security rounds as required.” During lockdowns such as those in place at the time of Cochran’s death, inmates could not leave their cells without an officer present nor easily seek help if attacked.
Count II of the complaint accuses Defendants Duncan and Kirby of deliberate indifference under the Eighth Amendment by knowingly placing Cochran at risk: “Defendants knew that Mr. Finley was a close observation inmate… [and] that Mr. Cochran was classified as a medium observation inmate whose history showed that he was more likely to be a victim of assaults by other inmates.” The document further alleges violations under the Fourteenth Amendment due to unnecessary pain and suffering inflicted upon Cochran leading up to his death.
Plaintiff Angela Hackney seeks several forms of relief from the court including assumption of jurisdiction over the matter; provision for a jury trial; nominal, compensatory, special damages; punitive damages; reasonable attorney’s fees; costs of litigation; and any additional relief deemed appropriate either at law or equity.
The attorneys representing Hackney are Jeff Filipovits (Georgia Bar No. 825553) and Wingo F. Smith (Georgia Bar No. 147896) from Filipovits & Smith LLC based in Decatur, Georgia. The case is identified as Case 1:26-cv-01434-TWT.
Source: 126cv01434_Angela_Hackney_v_Monina_Duncan_Complaint_Northern_District_of_Georgia.pdf
