by Caroline Gabsewics
Staff Writer
Two judges were invited to the first meeting of the 2007-08 Jacksonville Women Lawyers Association (JWLA) Wednesday to talk about their experiences as attorneys before becoming judges.
As County Court Judge Angela Cox and Circuit Court Judge Elizabeth Senterfitt began answering questions, there were a lot of similarities, but also a lot of differences in their careers as well as their personal lives.
President-elect Anita Pryor facilitated the meeting and asked both judges questions. Later, association members had the chance to ask their own questions.
Pryor started off by asking Cox and Senterfitt about their daily routines when they were attorneys. Senterfitt told the group that she is a Jacksonville native and graduated from Sandalwood High School in 1981, then from Jacksonville University in 1985 with a degree in accounting.
“I worked at Maxwell House as an accountant for one year,” said Senterfitt. “We were literally bean counters.”
After one year she left for law school at Florida State University College of Law. While a law student, she applied for an internship at the State Attorney’s Office in Jacksonville.
“I fell in love with it,” she said.
Senterfitt graduated a semester early on a Friday in December and began working at the State Attorney’s Office the following Monday.
“It was a terrific experience,” she said.
Senterfitt worked in the Special Assault Unit and left the State Attorney’s Office as the director of the unit.
“The cases were horrible, but I felt like I could make a difference,” she said.
While working in the office, she met her husband, who was then a rookie police officer and today still works for the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office. They were married in 1990 and in 1992 their daughter was born.
“It was a juggling process,” said Senterfitt. “I was married, had a daughter...I worked at home, at night and on the weekends.”
Cox’s pre-bench background is similar to Senterfitt’s.
“I also married a police officer,” she said. “We met on a case, but we didn’t get married until after I was on the bench.”
But how Cox got to where she is today is very different from Senterfitt. Cox grew up in Detroit with her grandmother.
“My grandma told me to do something and I just so happened to be fast,” said Cox. “I got a track scholarship to Tennessee State. But once I got there I hung up my track shoes and put on my political hat and ran for student body president.”
Cox was interested in politics and law for a reason.
“My only brother was shot and killed in Detroit,” she said. “The experience I had in the courtroom then left a great impression on me. They helped me understand the process and they respected me.”
Cox attended the University of Memphis Law School. Like Senterfitt, Cox applied to the State Attorney’s Office in Jacksonville. Cox was offered a job and moved with her clothes and a TV.
“That is all I had while I was a student,” she said.
Cox said working in the State Attorney’s Office was a great experience for her as well. Senterfitt was Cox’s boss in the Special Assault Unit and spent seven years with the Office.
“I spent that time developing my career during those seven years,” she said. “The one thing I realized was that our reputations are extremely important in this career — any career.”
Although Cox and Senterfitt eventually both got to the bench, their roads were very different. It was something they both worked towards, but Senterfitt was elected and Cox was appointed.
Senterfitt campaigned for three months and said campaigning was quite the experience. Cox was told by co-workers and judges that she had no chance to be appointed, but County Court Judge Gary Flower told her to make a checklist on “how to get appointed to the bench.”
“I worked on it every day,” said Cox. “People told me I was too young — I was 32 at the time — but I made my application stand out with letters from co-workers, pictures from events I participated in.”
Cox was told, if she was appointed, Gov. Jeb Bush would call her.
“I got the phone call and they said, ‘Hold for the governor,’” she said. “I thought, ‘Oh my God, I got it.’ He said to me, ‘You will make a great judge, make me proud.’ I was so nervous I said, ‘You make a great governor, make me proud.’”
• The next JWLA luncheon is Nov. 7 at noon at River City Brewing Company. The speaker is John Gordon, motivational speaker and author of “The Energy Bus.” The first 40 people who RSVP to the luncheon will receive a free copy of his book.