Charlie Cofer was born in Radford, Virginia. His father was a Methodist minister, and his mother was a high school teacher. He graduated from Duke University in 1974 with a B.A. in Political Science and Zoology. He attended law school at the University of Virginia, and graduated in 1977. He was admitted to practice law in Florida later that same year.
Cofer worked as an associate with the firm of Mahoney Hadlow & Adams in Jacksonville for over 2 years before joining the Public Defender’s office in January of 1980. He served as an Assistant Public Defender for over 18 years, including 10 years as a member of the Homicide Team. He handled more than 63 contested jury trials, and 26 homicide trials.
Cofer was appointed as a Duval County Judge in 1998. He was re-elected to that position three times. During his 17 years as a judge, Cofer handled over 78,000 criminal cases and over 27,000 civil cases. Charlie Cofer resigned his position as a Duval County Judge on November 30, 2015, in order to run for Public Defender for the Fourth Judicial Circuit. He was elected to serve as Public Defender in the November, 2016, general election, and took office on January 3, 2017. He has been re-elected without opposition to another four-year term beginning in January, 2021.