Judge Carson Burch Shafer

Judge Carson Burch Shafer, age 95, of Powder Springs passed away Tuesday, February 10, 2015. Memorial Services will be held Friday, February 13, 2015 at 2pm at McEachern Memorial United Methodist Church with Dr. Laurence McCullough, Rev. Tommy Willingham and Rev. Wallace Wheeles officiating. Private interment services will be held at Kennesaw Memorial Park. The family will receive friends at a reception at the Christian Life Center (CLC) immediately following the service.

Judge Shafer is preceded in death by his parents, Brooks W. and Elizabeth Mae Shafer; first wife, Rue Crane Shafer; brother, B.W. Shafer; sister, Edna S. Green and step grandson, Edward William Wells III. He is survived by his wife, Lawana Long Wells Shafer; step children, Edward William (Sherri) Wells Jr. of Dahlonega, GA, Richard Alan (Chrissy) Wells of Powder Springs, GA, and Janean Wells Ray (Chris) Stone of Marietta, GA; Step grandchildren, Dr. Jason Richard Wells M.D., Megan Allison Ray (Justin) Leach, Tyler Matthew Ray, Wesley Walker Wells and Katie Christine (Ryan) Hallquist; Nephew, Jack Storey (Emile) Shafer; Niece, Rue Shafer (Lon) Johnson and several grand nephews and niece.

Judge Carson B. Shafer spent his life advising, guiding, and helping to solve problems for others. The son of Brooks W. Shafer and Elizabeth Mae Hutchinson Shafer, he was born in Barnesville, Georgia on October 14, 1919. His family moved to Atlanta where he attended Fulton County High School, Georgia Tech and Atlanta Law School.

In 1941 he joined the U.S. Navy with his brother B.W. Shafer. He was then transferred to the U.S. Marine Corps and was an E.M. Second Class, serving with the first group entering Nagasaki after the atomic bomb was dropped. He was discharged from the Marines on December 8, 1945.

Georgia Power utilized Judge Shafer for his engineering and leadership skills for 24 years, after which he began his second career as Solicitor, and then Judge with the City Court of Atlanta (known as the Atlanta Traffic Court). In 1992 Judge Shafer became Chief Judge and implemented many innovations in efficiency and public convenience.

During his tenure as Chief Judge, the Court handled as many cases on a yearly basis (over 200,000) as it ever had, and the Court produced more revenue than it ever had. Most traffic cases were disposed of within three weeks, and most DUI cases were concluded within eight weeks. The Atlanta Traffic Court was an extremely efficient “Specialized Court” before that term even existed. One year the Court brought in $28 million. This was the result of Judge Shafer hiring two Court Administrators, Bob Bray and Mattie Thompson, who at Judge Shafer’s direction created an Amnesty Program and a Warrant Division to recover uncollected fines. A Failure To Appear Court was also created to hear Failure To Appear cases on a walk-in basis, making it convenient for court users to pay off old tickets and get their licenses reinstated. This FTA Court also greatly increased revenue collection, a big plus for Atlanta taxpayers.

Judge Shafer also began Customer Service training for court employees, which greatly improved the court experience for court users. Other accomplishments during his term included automating the 912 (traffic conviction records) to the Department of Public Safety (now known as the Department of Driver Services).

Pursuant to a new state law, Judge Shafer also contracted with Private Probation Services, the Court’s first private probation company. This saved the City money because it shifted the cost of probation from the City to those convicted of offenses who used the probation services.

Judge Shafer also increased revenue by instituting online payment of traffic fines through the Court’s own website, Atlanta being the first traffic court in the State of Georgia to do so. For this achievement, the Court received its first Georgia Council of Court Administrators’ Program of the Year award.

In addition to these public accomplishments as Chief Judge, Judge Shafer provided advice and guidance on court services and operations, career development, personal finance, parenting, and general life advice to whoever sought him out. Judge Shafer spent every morning from 6:00 a.m. until court began at 8:00 a.m. in his office as an available resource, exercising his leadership skills with the utmost in patience and humor. His common sense was unparalleled. Judge Shafer was known as a fair and astute judge in the courtroom. He gave the same attention to a stop sign case as he did to a DUI jury trial. He was quick to grasp the essentials of any case.

Judge Shafer had a long-term relationship of mutual respect and admiration with Tom Murphy, Speaker of the House of the Georgia General Assembly. Although Judge Shafer had many friends in the executive and legislative branches of state and local government, he was acutely aware of the necessity for separation of powers of the three branches and strictly maintained ethical boundaries. He understood that the checks and balances were just as important in local government as in state and federal government. He also realized that most Atlanta citizens’ contact with the judicial system took place in the Atlanta Traffic Court and made sure that fairness was the experience they took away from the court. His judgment and temperament were such that he could have served admirably on the bench of any level of court. He maintained control of his courtroom and respect for the court while always being patient and listening to both sides.

Judge Shafer cherished and nourished his relationships with family and friends. Even in his nineties, he attended every graduation and every birthday and holiday celebration in his extended family. He provided practical advice on every conceivable topic when requested, and he received frequent requests. He belonged to the McEachern Memorial United Methodist Church, the Georgia State Bar Association, and the Atlanta Lawyers’ Club.

Up until his death, Judge Shafer continued to enjoy an active social life and for over ten years met every Tuesday for lunch to discuss current events and old times with retired Judges Edward Baety, Nina Radakovich, and retired Courtroom Clerk Patricia Martenn. They were occasionally joined by former Court Administrator Bob Bray (now with the Administrative Office of the Courts of Georgia as Executive Director of the Council of State Court Judges), Former Clerk of Court Daryl Lockhart, Frances Hollis, and other former professional associates. Most of these lunches were at Ted’s Montana Grill West Cobb where Ted’s Employees Karen Young and Shannon Ebersol became his friends. Although the conversations included plenty of legal topics, they always came around to discussions of what Judge Shafer valued most; family. He excelled in sharing his wisdom on dealing with children and grandchildren with love.

He also lunched regularly with retired FBI agents Joe Tucker and Joe Roebuck. Some of his favorite places for lunch were Bobby and June’s, Harold’s Barbecue, Wallace’s Barbecue in Austell, The Colonnade, Houston’s, and The Varsity. Other longtime friends he saw or kept in touch with regularly included attorneys Bill McKInney, Byron Attridge, Steve Weiner, Stratton Leedy and Wyman Lamb, Retired Deputy Police Chief Louis Archangeli, Retired Police Chief Eldrin Bell, Judge Don Shaffer, Mattie Thompson, Warren Shore, and Carol Frye.

Judge Shafer’s entire life was about serving the public and honoring those he loved and respected. He provided excellent problem-solving, legal, and judicial services to the public, to his family, and to his friends with absolute integrity for over 70 years.

In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made to McEachern Memorial United Methodist Church, Care Center Fund, 4075 Macland Rd. Powder Springs, GA 30127. Online guestbook available at www.westcobbfuneralhome.com . West Cobb Funeral Home and Crematory, Inc., 2480 Macland Rd. Marietta, GA 30064 is in charge of arrangements.