Investigator

The Investigator provides statewide field support, including animal investigations, animal emergency sheltering, and interagency response activities. This role assists law enforcement, animal control agencies, and prosecutors by providing subject-matter expertise in animal cruelty cases, evidence documentation, and animal welfare standards, without exercising law enforcement authority.

In addition to investigative support, the Investigator plays a critical operational role in establishing, staffing, and operating emergency and satellite animal shelters and providing direct animal care during large-scale responses, seizures, and disasters. This position also serves as an educator and trainer for law enforcement and animal control professionals, delivering instruction on animal cruelty investigations, animal handling, documentation, and best practices.

Duties & Responsibilities

• Serve as a professional resource to state and local jurisdictions in all aspects of animal cruelty investigations.

• Assist partner agencies with scene assessments, animal condition documentation, evidence photography and videography, and report preparation.

• Provide expert guidance on animal welfare standards, cruelty indicators, seizure planning considerations, and cost-of-care principles.

• Maintain accurate, thorough, and timely investigative records for all assigned cases.

• Provide expert testimony in court proceedings when requested, including testimony related to animal condition, investigative findings, and documentation methods.

• Maintain working knowledge of Georgia animal law, including cruelty statutes, animal seizure considerations, and related legal concepts.

• Assist with planning, setup, operation, and demobilization of emergency or satellite animal sheltering facilities.

• Perform hands-on setup of animal housing, intake areas, supply staging, sanitation stations, and operational flow at shelter sites.

• Provide direct, humane care to animals housed in emergencies or temporary shelters, including feeding, cleaning, enrichment, monitoring, and basic handling.

• Support intake, identification, movement, and reunification of animals during large scale responses.

• Ensure animals are handled and cared for in accordance with departmental standards, Fear Free principles, and humane best practices.

• Work collaboratively with Logistics Coordinators and shelter teams to support sustained field operations.

• Establish and maintain professional relationships with law enforcement, animal control, prosecutors, veterinarians, and animal welfare partners in assigned regions.

• Develop and deliver training, presentations, and educational sessions for law enforcement, animal control officers, prosecutors, and partner agencies.

• Assist with regional and statewide trainings, roll-call briefings, workshops, and conferences.

• Serve as an Operation Humane subject-matter expert during trainings and professional meetings. • Support coalition-building efforts by sharing best practices, trends, and lessons learned with partner agencies.

• Requires the ability to operate, maneuver and/or control the actions of a vehicle, tools, computers and/or materials used in performing essential functions.

• Some tasks require the ability to perceive and discriminate visual cues or signals. Some tasks require the ability to communicate orally and utilize olfactory senses.

• Tasks require the ability to exert very moderate physical effort in light work, typically involving some combination of stooping, kneeling, crouching and crawling, and which may involve some lifting, carrying, pushing and/or pulling of objects and materials of moderate weight (50 pounds).

• Performance of essential functions may require exposure to adverse environmental conditions, such as dirt, dust, pollen, odors, wetness, humidity, rain, temperature extremes, traffic hazards, bright/dim light, toxic agents, or violence.

• Responds to deploy on cruelty or disaster-related operations at a moment’s notice. This includes overnight, multiple-day events nights, weekends, and possibly holidays.