B. Dexter Ryland

Who was B. Dexter Ryland?

Bert Dexter Ryland was a state Ninth Judicial District Court judge in Alexandria, Louisiana, having served from 1990 until his death in office.

In September 1996, Ryland was nominated for outstanding jurist by the Alexandria Bar Association. He died a few weeks after being hospitalized in the Rapides Medical Center with pneumonia. Earlier in the year, Ryland issued a controversial ruling regarding the selection by the board of trustees of the new president of Louisiana College, a Baptist-affiliated institution in Pineville.

A Democrat, Ryland won the "Division E" judgeship in his state's jungle primary held on November 6, 1990, by defeating Bernard Kramer, a personal injury lawyer in Alexandria and also a Democrat. Ryland received 18,602 votes from 108 precincts in Rapides Parish to Kramer's 10,799. Ryland faced minimal or no opposition for his judgeship thereafter. All of the state judgeships in Rapides Parish are held by Democrats.