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[[University of Arkansas]] at [[Little Rock]]

[[University of Arkansas]] at [[Little Rock]]

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'''Robert Lane Pittard''', known as '''Lane Pittard''' (June 19, 1957<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.mylife.com/robert-pittard/lanepittardome/Home?uid=3321448|title=Robert Pittard|publisher=Mylife.com|accessdate=July 31, 2019}}</ref> &ndash; December 12, 2023), was a [[Republican Party|Republican]] [[judge]] for the District C seat of the [[Louisiana]] 26th Judicial District Court, based in Bossier and Webster parishes in the northwestern portion of his state. 

'''Robert Lane Pittard''', known as '''Lane Pittard''' (June 19, 1957<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.mylife.com/robert-pittard/lanepittardome/Home?uid=3321448|title=Robert Pittard|publisher=Mylife.com|accessdate=July 31, 2019}}</ref> &ndash; December 12, 2023), was a [[Republican Party|Republican]] [[judge]] for the District C seat of the [[Louisiana]] 26th Judicial District Court, based in Bossier and Webster parishes in the northwestern portion of his state. Judge Pittard was repected for his reputation of "standing up for victims and putting bad guys away."<ref name=obit/>

A native of [[Minden, Louisiana|Minden]] in Webster Parish, Pittard graduated from [[Minden (Louisiana) High School|Minden High School]] and attended [[Northwestern State University]] in [[Natchitoches, Louisiana|Natchitoches]], Louisiana. He obtained his legal credentials from the William H. Bowen School of Law at the [[University of Arkansas]] at [[Little Rock]]. Until his election as judge, he was in private practice with the firm Pittard & Jacobs in [[Bossier City]], Louisiana.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.intelius.com/people-search/Lane-Pittard/Benton-LA|title=Lane Pittard|publisher=Intelius.com|accessdate=October 16, 2017}}</ref> Pittard was also experienced in estate planning, probate issues, business and corporate law, and real estate and property law. For fourteen years, Pittard has been a prosecutor in the Bossier-Webster District Attorney's office. Pittard was a member of the First [[United Methodist]] Church of Bossier City. He and his wife, Adelise, a retiree of the Bossier Parish School Board, have two sons and reside in Benton, the Bossier Parish seat of government.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.shreveporttimes.com/story/news/2017/10/14/pittard-wins-district-judge-seat/761723001/|title=Pittard wins district judge seat|publisher=''The Shreveport Times''|date=October 14, 2017|accessdate=October 16, 2017}}</ref> 

A native of [[Minden, Louisiana|Minden]] in Webster Parish, Pittard graduated from [[Minden (Louisiana) High School|Minden High School]] and received a Bachelor of Business Administration from [[Northwestern State University]] in [[Natchitoches, Louisiana|Natchitoches]], Louisiana. He worked in business until 1992,<ref name=obit/> when he obtained his legal credentials from the William H. Bowen School of Law at the [[University of Arkansas]] at [[Little Rock]]. Until his election as judge, he was in private practice with the firm Pittard & Jacobs in [[Bossier City]], Louisiana.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.intelius.com/people-search/Lane-Pittard/Benton-LA|title=Lane Pittard|publisher=Intelius.com|accessdate=October 16, 2017}}</ref> Pittard was also experienced in estate planning, probate issues, business and corporate law, and real estate and property law. For fourteen years, Pittard has been a prosecutor in the Bossier-Webster District Attorney's office. Pittard was a member of the First [[United Methodist]] Church of Bossier City. He and his wife, Adelise, a retiree of the Bossier Parish School Board, have two sons and reside in Benton, the Bossier Parish seat of government.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.shreveporttimes.com/story/news/2017/10/14/pittard-wins-district-judge-seat/761723001/|title=Pittard wins district judge seat|publisher=''The Shreveport Times''|date=October 14, 2017|accessdate=October 16, 2017}}</ref> 

Pittard defeated fellow Republican Cynthia Leigh Carroll-Bridges, a resident of Bossier City who practices family law in [[Shreveport]], in the special election held on October 14, 2017, for the vacant judgeship formerly held by Judge Jeffrey Stephen Cox (born February 1965), who sits on the Louisiana Court of Appeal for the Second Circuit in Shreveport. He received 7,262 votes (60 percent) to Bridges' 4,886 (40 percent). In a turnout of just under 15 percent, Pittard won Bossier Parish with 58 percent of the ballots cast and Webster Parish with 63 percent.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://voterportal.sos.la.gov/Graphical|title=Election Results|date=October 14, 2017|accessdate=October 16, 2017}}</ref> He carried the backing of DA [[Schuyler Marvin]], a [[Democratic Party|Democrat]]-turned-Republican.

Pittard defeated fellow Republican Cynthia Leigh Carroll-Bridges, a resident of Bossier City who practices family law in [[Shreveport]], in the special election held on October 14, 2017, for the vacant judgeship formerly held by Judge Jeffrey Stephen Cox (born February 1965), who sits on the Louisiana Court of Appeal for the Second Circuit in Shreveport. He received 7,262 votes (60 percent) to Bridges' 4,886 (40 percent). In a turnout of just under 15 percent, Pittard won Bossier Parish with 58 percent of the ballots cast and Webster Parish with 63 percent.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://voterportal.sos.la.gov/Graphical|title=Election Results|date=October 14, 2017|accessdate=October 16, 2017}}</ref> He carried the backing of DA [[Schuyler Marvin]], a [[Democratic Party|Democrat]]-turned-Republican.

All six judges of the 26th Judicial District claim Republican affiliation.

All six judges of the 26th Judicial District claim Republican affiliation.

Pittard died suddenly at his home on December 12, 2023.

Pittard died of an illness at his home on December 12, 2023. U.S. House [[Speaker]] [[Mike Johnson]] of Bossier Parish expressed his sympathy. "We are saddened by the tragic news of Judge Lane Pittard’s passing. He was a humble leader and a dedicated jurist who served our area honorably."<ref name=obit>{{cite web|url=https://www.shreveporttimes.com/story/news/local/2023/12/13/a-northwest-louisiana-judge-lane-pittard-dead-following-illness/71908552007/|title=Northwest Louisiana Judge Lane Pittard dies after illness|author=Makenzie Boucher|publisher=''The Shreveport Times''|date=December 14, 2023}}</ref>

 

==See also==

==See also==