Retired Judge Charles Cofer was born in Radford, Va. in 1952. His father was a Methodist minister and his mother was a high school chemistry teacher. Cofer attended public school in Fairfax County, Va. He graduated magna cm laude from Duke University in 1974, with degrees in political science and zoology. He attended law school at the University of Virginia and received his law degree in 1977.
After graduation, Judge Cofer joined the Jacksonville firm of Mahoney Hadlow & Adams. His practice focused on the area of labor law. Cofer left the firm in 1980 to accept a position as an assistant public defender, working for Public Defender Lou Frost.
Cofer worked as an assistant public defender for 18 years. He was a member of the office’s Homicide Team for more than 10 years. Cofer handled thousands of cases and was involved in more than 63 contested jury trials, including 26 homicide trials in Duval, Clay and Nassau counties. During his tenure with the office, he served as a Felony Division chief, Juvenile Division chief, chief of County Court and chief of Circuit Court. As county court chief, he was responsible for the supervision and training of new attorneys. As a member of the Homicide Team, Cofer lectured on the death penalty at the “Life Over Death” educational conferences presented by the Florida Public Defenders Association. He was the Fourth Judicial Circuit Representative to the Death Penalty Steering Committee of the Florida Public Defenders Association from 1992 until 1995.
Cofer was elected to serve as a representative on the statewide Public Defenders Association Board from 1994 through 1996. Comprised of the elected Public Defenders from each of Florida’s 20 judicial circuits, the Board makes crucial decisions on policy affecting the Public Defender system. Cofer was appointed to fill a vacancy on the Duval County Court bench in 1998. He was re-elected to that position without opposition in 2000, 2006, and 2012. During his time on the bench, Cofer has presided over 100,000 cases, including over 78,000 criminal cases and over 27,000 civil actions. Cofer’s public service has been recognized in the many ways:
∞ twice selected as the Duval County Court Administrative Judge by his fellow judges.
∞ selected by the Florida Supreme Court to serve as a mentor to new judges.
∞ named “Jurist of the Year” in 2011 by the local chapter of the American Board of Trial Advocates.
∞ founding member of the Florida Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, Northeast Florida
∞ served on the felony bench by special assignment from the Chief Judge for the Circuit.
Cofer served as president of the PTA Dad’s Club at Hendricks Avenue Elementary School; Chair of the Board of the Southside United Methodist Church Pre-School; sunday school teacher at Southside United Methodist Church; Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Pastoral Counseling Center in San Marco; President of the San Jose County Club Swim Team, President of the River City Swim League; and President of the Board of Governors of the San Jose County Club.
