Beloved NAFUSA member Edward (Ed) Tarver passed away from
complications of surgery on February 9, 2024, in Augusta, Georgia. He was 64.
His friends and colleagues remember his ready smile, infectious laughter and
his service to justice and to his community.

Ed, who was recognized as a “trailblazing black attorney and civic leader” in a
headline announcing his death in the Augusta Chronicle, led a full and
honorable life of public service. Following graduation from then Augusta
College in 1981, he entered the U.S. Army, serving a tour in South Korea in
1982 and rising to the rank of Captain. Upon his discharge from the Army in
1989, Ed followed his dream to attend law school, earning his law degree in
1991 from the University of Georgia. After graduating, he clerked for U.S.
District Court Judge Dudley Bowen in the Southern District of Georgia.

Ed rose to become a partner in the Augusta, Georgia firm Hull Barrett and
served as a State Senator from Georgia’s 22nd District from 2005-2009. In
2009, President Obama nominated him to become U.S. Attorney for the
Southern District of Georgia, becoming the first African American to hold that
position. He was sworn in by Federal Judge Bowen who praised his former law
clerk as a “man of integrity.” After resigning from the U.S. Attorney position in
2017, he cofounded the firm Enoch Tarver with his law partner Ed Enoch.

An editorial in the Savannah Morning News in 2017 named Ed Tarver “one of
the best U.S. Attorneys in a long line of professional prosecutors who have
held this important post.” In addition to his professional accomplishments. Ed
held leadership positions in community and fraternity activities including,
among many others, the Augusta Chamber of Commerce, the Leadership
Georgia Foundation’s Board of Trustees, and the East Georgia Easter Seals
Society. He was a member of Doyle Grove Missionary Baptist Church.

Ed is survived by his wife Dr. Carol Thompson Tarver, a pediatrician in Augusta,
Georgia, daughter Elizabeth Tarver and son Edward Tarver, Jr. and
stepdaughters Riley and Ryan Armant.

In accordance with NAFUSA tradition, a flag was flown in his honor over the Department of Justice on February 12, 2024.