J. Ernest Bell II (born April 26, 1941) is an American politician and lawyer. He served in the

Maryland House of Delegates The Maryland House of Delegates is the lower house of the Maryland General Assembly, legislature of the U.S. state of Maryland. It consists of 141 delegates elected from 47 districts. The House of Delegates Chamber is in the Maryland State House ...

from 1983 to 1994, representing District 29B.

Early life

J. Ernest Bell II was born on April 26, 1941, in

Leonardtown, Maryland Leonardtown is a town in and the county seat of St. Mary's County, Maryland, St. Mary's County, Maryland, United States. The population was 4,563 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Historic Leonardtown includes both a Leonardtown Hig ...

. He graduated from

St. Mary's Ryken High School St. Mary's Ryken High School, located on an waterfront campus on Breton Bay, is a coeducational, secondary school sponsored by the Xaverian Brothers. SMR is a member of the National Association of Independent Schools and is accredited by the Mi ...

in 1959. Bell graduated from

Mount St. Mary's University Mount St. Mary's University is a private Catholic university in Emmitsburg, Maryland, United States. It has the largest Catholic seminary in the United States. Undergraduate programs are divided between the College of Liberal Arts, the Richar ...

with a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, B.S., B.Sc., SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree that is awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Scienc ...

in 1963. He graduated from the

Columbus School of Law The Catholic University of America Columbus School of Law is the law school of the Catholic University of America, a private Roman Catholic research university in Washington, D.C., United States. More than 370 Juris Doctor students attend the ...

Catholic University of America The Catholic University of America (CUA) is a private Catholic research university in Washington, D.C., United States. It is one of two pontifical universities of the Catholic Church in the United States – the only one that is not primarily a ...

with a J.D. in 1966. He was

admitted to the bar An admission to practice law is acquired when a lawyer receives a license to practice law. In jurisdictions with two types of lawyer, as with barristers and solicitors, barristers must gain admission to the bar whereas for solicitors there are dist ...

in Maryland in 1970.

Career

Bell served as a captain in the

U.S. Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionary ...

from 1966 to 1970. He received a

Navy Achievement Medal The Achievement Medal is a military decoration of the United States Armed Forces. The Achievement Medal was first proposed as a means to recognize outstanding achievement or meritorious service of military personnel who were not eligible to rece ...

. He then worked as an attorney. Bell served as a member of the

, representing District 29B and

St. Mary's County, Maryland St. Mary's County, established in 1637, is a county located in the U.S. state of Maryland. As of the 2020 census, the population was 113,777. Its county seat is Leonardtown. The name is in honor of Mary, the mother of Jesus. St. Mary's Count ...

from 1983 to 1994. He was a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

Personal life

Bell is married and has four children.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bell, J. Ernest Living people 1941 births People from Leonardtown, Maryland Mount St. Mary's University alumni Columbus School of Law alumni Democratic Party members of the Maryland House of Delegates United States Marines 20th-century members of the Maryland General Assembly