Hon. Edward Rodgers to be honored with Law Library Naming
(April 2, 2025) – The Fifteenth Judicial Circuit Law Library in West Palm Beach will soon be renamed as the "Judge Edward Rodgers Law Library". At the request of Chief Judge Glenn Kelley, the Palm Beach County Board of County Commissioners formally approved the naming of the Daniel T. Hurley Courthouse, West Palm Beach, Law Library, after the late Judge Edward Rodgers during their April Board meeting. Plans for an unveiling ceremony are underway and official details will be announced later.
Judge Edward Rodgers served 22 years as a Judge in the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit. He graduated from Howard University with a Bachelor of Arts and subsequently obtained his Juris Doctorate from Florida A&M University College of Law. Two years after graduating from law school, Judge Rodgers was appointed the first Black county prosecutor. In 1973, he was appointed to the bench by then-Governor Reubin Askew, the first Black judge to serve in Palm Beach County. In 1977, he was elevated to the Circuit Court bench. Judge Rodgers later served one term as the County's first Black Chief Judge from 1983-1985.
In 1991, Judge Rodgers established the Riviera Beach Civil Drug Court which serves the citizens of Palm Beach County who struggle with substance abuse issues. In 1992, he was awarded the Jefferson Award; the Nobel prize for public service, in recognition was for his visionary work related to the Riviera Beach Civil Drug Court.
Judge Rodgers retired from the bench in 1995 but continued his community work, later serving as Councilman and Mayor of Riviera Beach. He passed away in 2018 and is remembered as an extraordinary jurist and community leader.