Roberta Kelley, 58, court reporter, lover of books, movies

Roberta “Bert” Kelley had a remarkable memory, which proved useful in her job as a court reporter and also in her personal life.

“I’d be talking to her and she would be drifting off, looking like she wasn’t paying any attention, which happens with married couples,” said her husband, Jim Kelley of Atlanta.

Enlarge this image

Family photo

Roberta Kelley, originally from Washington, D.C., enjoyed the challenge of transcribing such high-profile court cases as that of John Ehrlichman and the Larry Flynt shooting.

“I’d say, ‘You’re not listening to me,’ and she would repeat back every word I said for the last five minutes, including, ‘You’re not listening to me.’ It made it hard to win arguments.”

Mrs. Kelley enjoyed the intellectual challenges in complex legal battles, such as medical malpractice cases, her husband said. She transcribed depositions in several high-profile Atlanta cases, including one involving Watergate figure John Ehrlichman.

“She liked the give-and-take of it, the debate between the attorneys,” he said.

Mrs. Kelley, 58, died Sunday of brain cancer at her home in Atlanta. A memorial service will be 3 p.m. Sunday at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Atlanta. Wages and Sons Funeral Home in Stone Mountain is in charge of arrangements.

Mrs. Kelley was a native of Washington, D.C., and studied political science at the University of North Carolina-Greensboro. She worked in a law office in Atlanta before starting her own business as a court reporter. She worked for attorneys taking depositions, in which witnesses give sworn testimony for use in court at a later date.

Among the cases she worked on were the 1978 Lawrenceville shooting of Hustler magazine publisher Larry Flynt and his lawyer, her husband said.

Mr. Flynt had been charged with violating obscenity laws in Gwinnett County. The two were shot while returning to court after a lunch break.

Mrs. Kelley also transcribed the deposition of Mr. Ehrlichman, who was questioned about a meeting disclosed in the Watergate tapes. President Richard Nixon and executives of major U.S. automakers had discussed reducing car safety, her husband said.

When she wasn’t working, Mrs. Kelley loved reading contemporary literature and listening to music — everything from classical to the Grateful Dead. She was a movie buff, and her favorite movie was “The Sound of Music,” her husband said.

Survivors also include a daughter, Shannon Kelley of Atlanta; and two brothers, Walter Gose of Knoxville, Tenn., and Arthur Gose of Fairfax, Va.