More charges levied against woman in animal cruelty case

A Rockmart woman was jailed on felony charges for her involvement with the 115 dogs found by the Polk County Police Department.

According to Polk County Police Chief Kenny Dodd, Candice Sorrells, 34, of 742 Callaway Drive, Rockmart, was charged with 107 counts of being party to a crime of cruelty to animals, each a felony. She was taken into custody on Thursday morning for her involvement with the case being developed against Devecio Ranard Rowland, 32, who remained in jail on numerous charges after 115 dogs were discovered over the past days.

Jail records reported that both remained in jail without bond.

Additional dogs were found last Friday, Sept. 1, in Sorrells’ home. The mother and seven puppies were also taken in by Polk County Animal Control, Dodd said.

Dodd said his officers executed a search warrant on Sorrells’ Callaway Drive home this week as part of the case against Rowland and found evidence that she was part of the investigation.

“We found evidence that implicates her in being involved in and knew about what was going on,” Dodd said.

He added Rowland and Sorrells were dating.

An emergency hearing is being held on Tuesday, Sept. 12, over the fate of 35 dogs taken in from a Puckett Road address discovered by police last week as part of the overall group Rowland kept for the purposes of dog fighting. Dodd said his department and Animal Control have been waiting for the hearing to move forward on the condemnation process, to allow the county to take over the animals and

Currently, Polk County Animal Control is housing 17 out of the original 35 found at the Puckett Road address, according to Polk County Animal Control Director Jeff Crawford.

He said his department is still seeking rescue groups who are certified to take in the dogs to take 10 more that were part of the first group found on Cashtown Road on Aug. 28.

Crawford said those groups who are willing to take in the dogs can contact him at the Animal Control office at 770-749-8908.

Crawford said he did not have a count currently of how many of the dogs remained in facilities around the region who took in dogs from two of the three sites last week. He expected an update today on which dogs had been placed with rescue groups, and those that hadn’t.