At our recent Georgia Equine Rescue League (GERL) Board meeting, we had the privilege of hearing from Jessica Rock, Georgia’s Statewide Animal Crimes Resource Prosecutor. If her name sounds familiar, it’s because she played a lead role in the legal seizure of The Baker’s Dozen—13 starved horses found in Merriwether County back in September 2022. That case was a landmark for GERL, one of the few where we actually received restitution.
But Jessica’s impact stretches far beyond a single case.
Before that, she partnered with GERL as an instructor, lending her expertise in how to prepare an animal cruelty case for prosecution. She’s made it her mission to bring education and accountability to the way Georgia handles animal abuse—and thanks to her continued efforts, big changes are underway.
During the most recent legislative session, a new law—written by Jessica—was passed to expand Title 16. This legislation grants a newly formed division within the Department of Agriculture concurrent jurisdiction with law enforcement to investigate and prosecute animal crimes.
When Commissioner Tyler Harper took over the Department, he didn’t waste time making improvements. He brought in law enforcement veteran Harlan Proveaux to lead this new unit, which now includes approximately six P.O.S.T.-certified officers dedicated to animal cruelty investigations. These officers cover the entire state, taking over the cruelty cases that used to fall on the shoulders of agricultural inspectors (who now focus strictly on licensing and regulations).
Jessica’s work doesn’t stop at legislation. She continues to train rural animal control officers, encouraging them to pursue charges when warranted and showing them how to handle difficult cases. Her approach balances enforcement with empathy—recognizing that sometimes the right outcome involves seizing animals, and sometimes it means working with people to do better.
She also shared exciting news: she and her team are in the process of forming a statewide task force to help manage large-scale cruelty cases—whether it involves horses or dogs. The goal? To reduce the burden on small rescues like GERL and ensure that counties and cities actually follow through with filing the paperwork needed to seek reimbursement for the cost of care.
Because here’s the issue: under Georgia law, when animals are seized, owners must either surrender them (allowing for adoption) or begin paying for their care. But if the county or city attorney doesn’t file the proper motions—or doesn’t do it in time—the rescue organizations are left holding the bill. The new task force aims to close that gap and make the system work as it was intended.
Jessica is one of only a handful of prosecutors in the country who works exclusively on animal crimes statewide. And while there’s still a long road ahead, she’s already seeing a shift in attitudes.
More and more, prosecutors and law enforcement agencies are beginning to understand that animals are not just property—they’re lives that deserve protection. As Jessica puts it, “A lot of times, the right thing wasn’t done because of a lack of knowledge, not a lack of caring.” Her job is to make sure they understand how to do the right thing.
Everyone on our conference call left encouraged, enlightened, and hopeful. With the legislative progress, a newly empowered enforcement team, and the upcoming task force—one thing is clear: Georgia’s horses will be the winners.
And let me say this about that… we couldn’t be more proud to have Jessica Rock in our corner.
