Ex-Judge Francis A. Cochran Dies; Memorial Mass Today
A memorial Mass will be celebrated at 10 a.m. today for retired Judge Francis A. Cochran, whose career dated to the administrations of California Govs. James Rolph Jr. and Frank F. Merriam.
Cochran was 83 when he died of cancer Tuesday at his Playa del Rey home.
A 1930 graduate of USC School of Law, Cochran became executive secretary to Rolph and then to Merriam, who appointed him to the State Athletic Commission in 1937.
After World War II service in the Navy, Cochran, whose father was a deputy sheriff in Los Angeles County from 1890 to 1935, became a Superior Court commissioner in 1945. He was appointed to the Municipal Court bench in 1957 by Gov. Goodwin J. Knight and served primarily in the Van Nuys area until his retirement in 1972.
Survivors include his wife, Theresa; two daughters and five grandchildren. Today’s Mass is scheduled at St. Anastasia’s Roman Catholic Church in Westchester.
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