Laken Riley murder case prosecutor honored

Released by the Alcovy Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office;

Prosecutors from across Georgia recently gathered at the Jekyll Island Convention Center for the annual

summer conference put on by the Prosecuting Attorneys’ Council of Georgia. During this important yearly conference, District Attorneys from across Georgia honored Sheila Ross, the prosecutor who handled the case and trial of Jose Ibarra in Clarke County.

The District Attorneys Association of Georgia presented Ross with President’s Award for Excellence. This was in recognition of her unwavering commitment to justice and the victims of crime.

While this award honors Ms. Ross’s excellent career, it also specifically recognizes her work in 2024 on

the prosecution of Jose Ibarra. Just days after Ibarra’s arrest, Ross was tapped to lead this high-profile case in Athens, Georgia. Her hard work and top-notch advocacy culminated with a guilty verdict finding Ibarra guilty of the murder of Laken Riley.

“Sheila Ross exemplifies what a prosecutor should be. She handled the immense pressure of prosecuting one of the most high-profile cases in the last decade with grace, tenacity, and the upmost professionalism,” said Alcovy Judicial Circuit District Attorney Randy McGinley.

When she was first appointed special prosecutor over the Ibarra case, prominent defense attorney Don

Samuel was quoted saying, “She is, in my opinion, without exaggeration, the most formidable prosecutorin Georgia (state or federal).”

Ms. Ross serves as the Director of Capital Litigation for the Prosecuting Attorneys’ Council of Georgia.

She often serves as a special prosecutor in high profile and important cases throughout Georgia. Ross has been a prosecutor in Fulton County, Georgia, where she headed the Major Case Division, as well as prosecuting in San Francisco, California and Jacksonville, Florida.

Randy McGinley

District Attorney