Joseph Franklin Carpenter, 75, died peacefully in his Carson City home on Nov. 30, 2025 after suffering a stroke in July.
Joe was born in Yerington, Nev., on Jan. 25, 1950, and grew up there and in Sparks, Nev., and University Park, Md. He served as a page in the U.S. Senate for a year and graduated high school in 1967. He graduated from the The University of Nevada, Reno with a Bachelor of Arts in 1980 and received his Juris Doctor from University of the Pacific McGeorge School of Law in 1985. He worked for the Nevada Supreme Court from 1985 to 2008 when he retired as legal counsel to the court.
Joe is preceded in death by his parents, Jack and Jewel Carpenter, and his siblings, Judith Spangler and William L. Carpenter. He is survived by his partner, Anne Knowles, and four nephews, their wives, and their children: Alan Spangler and his wife Norina, and children Robert, Joseph and Hannah; Karl Spangler and his wife Nina, and son Eric; Daniel Carpenter, his wife Erika, and children Emily, Natalie and Noah; and Brian Carpenter, as well as his cousin William Carpenter. He is also survived by many friends from throughout his life.
