Judge Dan Brenner of Los Angeles County Superior Court was struck by a car while crossing a street in Los Angeles and killed Monday, according to industry and other officials, and NCTA, where he previously led the Legal Department for many years as senior vice president. After leaving the association, he went in 2009 to Hogan & Hartson, where he represented cable interests, before California Gov. Jerry Brown (D) named him a judge. Before NCTA, Brenner taught at UCLA, was an aide to then-FCC Chairman Mark Fowler, and he has been on the CPB board and CPB vice chairman. Other details weren't available.

Gray Television Chairman William Mayher, 77, died Sunday in Athens, Georgia, the broadcaster said. Chairman since 1993, the former neurosurgeon helped oversee Gray as it transitioned from a small newspaper publisher and broadcaster to a major owner of U.S. TV stations. Funeral is 11 a.m. Wednesday at St. Paul's Episcopal Church, 212 N. Jefferson St., Albany, Georgia.

John Stewart Bryan, 77, Media General chairman, died Saturday at Bon Secours St. Mary’s Hospital in Richmond, Virginia, from complications related to neck injuries from a Jan. 15 fall, the company said. His 50-plus years in local media included being publisher of four newspapers, including the Richmond Times-Dispatch, and he also was CEO of Media General. Bryan is survived by wife, two sisters, five grandchildren and others. Donations in Bryan's honor can be made to the George C. Marshall Foundation or the Virginia Historical Society. Funeral arrangements were pending.

Jay Kitchen, 70, president of PCIA from 1994 to 2004, died Sunday after a long battle with Parkinson’s disease. An engineer, he was also a wireless aide at the FCC and former president of the National Association of Business and Educational Radio. Kitchen “played an instrumental role in shaping the modern voice of the wireless industry in Washington,” said PCIA President Jonathan Adelstein. “Under his watch, PCIA established itself as a leading organization representing companies that build, operate and own the nation's vital wireless infrastructure.” Kitchen is survived by wife, two sons and four grandchildren. The family plans a celebration of life ceremony Jan. 16 from 1 to 3 p.m. at Mount Vernon Country Club, 5111 Old Mill Rd., Alexandria, Virginia, and in Palm Island, Florida, Jan. 2.

Connie Durcsak, 50, Utilities Telecom Council president-CEO, died suddenly Saturday, the group said. Cause of death wasn't announced. Durcsak had held the job since 2011 and was previously at PCIA. “Connie was a strong leader, a great visionary and an outstanding wife, mother, friend and mentor,” said Ron Taylor, chairman of UTC. “We are all in a state of shock at this unbelievable loss and we ask for prayers and support for her family, the UTC staff and the greater UTC membership.” Durcsak is survived by her husband and two daughters. The funeral service is at 11 a.m. Friday at the Murphy Funeral Home, 4510 Wilson Blvd., Arlington, Virginia. PCIA President Jonathan Adelstein also noted the death, saying Durcsak had been at PCIA for more than a decade and was important to the growth of that association.

Everett Parker, 102, civil rights defender, founder of the United Church of Christ Office of Communication (UCC OC) and trailblazer in setting a precedent for public participation in FCC proceedings, died Thursday, longtime friends and allies told us. He died after a possible stroke at a hospital in White Plains, New York, said Cheryl Leanza, policy adviser to the UCC. In a 1966 U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit decision against the FCC, UCC OC under Parker established the right of anyone to participate in proceedings before the agency, the group said. He directed UCC OC until 1983. Parker is survived by a son, a daughter, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Funeral details will be forthcoming, and donations can be made in his honor to UCC. Statements honoring Parker flowed in the hours after UCC OC announced his death Thursday, including from FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler and from Commissioner Mignon Clyburn. Parker was "the man responsible for the public having the ability to challenge FCC actions," noted Wheeler's statement. "Perhaps no single person has had a greater impact on this country's communications landscape," he said. Parker "was special hero of mine," said ex-Commissioner Michael Copps, now Common Cause special adviser.

Michael Birck, 77, retired chairman and one of the co-founders of Tellabs, died July 6 of leukemia. He worked for Bell Labs, Continental Telephone Laboratories and Wescom before launching transmission and signaling equipment maker Tellabs. Survivors include his wife, two sons and a daughter. A funeral Mass is set for 10 a.m. Saturday at St. Isaac Jogues Church in Hinsdale, Illinois.

Ralph Roberts, 95, Comcast founder, died Thursday in Philadelphia of natural causes. The chairman emeritus of the No. 1 U.S. multichannel video programming distributor, now run by his son Brian, Comcast's chairman and CEO, Ralph Roberts founded Comcast in 1963 with the purchase of a 1,200-subscriber cable system in Tupelo, Mississippi. He helped oversee Comcast's expansion over the years, partly through acquisitions, including the 2002 AT&T Broadband buy that vaulted Comcast to No. 1 MVPD. Survivors include his wife, three other children besides Brian and eight grandchildren. A private funeral service is planned for the family and a ceremony celebrating Ralph's life will be held at a future time, the company said Friday. Statements of condolence poured in Friday, including from the American Cable Association, Cablevision, Charter Communications, C-SPAN, NCTA and TWC (see here, here, here and here). FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler learned from Roberts, Wheeler said. "He has left a lasting legacy on the communications landscape of America.”

Charles Benton, 84, died at home in Evanston, Illinois, Wednesday of cancer. He chaired the Benton Foundation, which he founded in 1981 with a grant from his father. At the foundation, he advocated for regulation on media and telecom matters such as broadcast ownership and the USF. President Jimmy Carter named Benton chairman of the National Commission on Libraries and Information Science and of the first White House conference on library and information services. President Bill Clinton appointed him to the Presidential Advisory Committee on the Public Interest Obligations of Digital Television Broadcasters. And President Barack Obama named him to the board of the Institute for Museum and Library Services. Benton is survived by his wife, two children, including daughter Adrianne Furniss, who is the Benton Foundation's executive director, a sister and five grandchildren. Funeral and other arrangements are pending.

Konrad Schaefer, 77, died at home Tuesday in McLean, Virginia. He worked on telecom issues in the Carter and Reagan administrations, and was an aide on international issues to then-FCC Chairman Mark Fowler. He then started his own international telecom consulting firm and co-founded the first private company to lay a fiber cable between the U.S. and U.K. His last job was chairman and CEO of Swisscom North America, which he started after Switzerland, a client at his consulting firm, asked him to open a North American arm of that country's state-owned telecom company. Schaefer is survived by wife, sister, two sons, a daughter and four grandchildren. Funeral services are 1:45 p.m. Friday at Temple Rodef Shalom, 2100 Westmoreland St., Falls Church, Virginia, and burial is immediately afterwards at King David Memorial Gardens, followed by a gathering at what was his home, 1487 Evans Farm Dr., McLean. Contributions can be made to Capital Caring, 950 N. Glebe Rd., Arlington, Virginia.