CONCORD, N.H. (AP) - A federal judge has ruled that a New Hampshire judge who resigned in 2008 for shielding her husband’s assets from state creditors isn’t entitled to a pension of over $89,000 annually because she resigned before reaching retirement age.
Patricia Coffey, of California, sued the New Hampshire Judicial Retirement Plan and its board of trustees last year after her pension bid was rejected. She also asked for more than $400,000 in back-pension benefits. The judge found Patricia Coffey hadn’t met pension requirements.
The 65-year-old Coffey was a superior court judge for 16 1/2 years. She resigned at 54 after admitting she helped hide the assets of her lawyer-husband, John Coffey, as he was being disbarred. She said she realized then the state probably would demand that he pay thousands of dollars to cover the cost of investigating him.
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