Vince Ryan

Last modified on: 11-11-2016 14:54:36


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General Information



Personal Information

Vince Ryan was elected to a four-year term as the Harris County Attorney on November 4, 2008 and took his oath of office on January 1, 2009. He is no stranger to the office, having served an Assistant Harris County Attorney and First Assistant for former County Attorney Mike Driscoll from 1981 to 1987.

In 1987, Vince, with the support and help of many grassroots activists, scored a tremendous upset to win a seat on the Houston City Council for District C. He was reelected to two more terms. In 1994, Vince was the Democratic nominee for Harris County Judge, but lost. This was the year in which George W. Bush was first elected governor and all contested Democrats in Harris County lost their election bids.

After that, Vince was appointed by the President, and later unanimously confirmed by the U.S. Senate, to serve on the Board of the Panama Canal Commission. This bi-national board oversaw the Canal and its historic transition to Panama on December 31, 1999.

Following his service on the Panama Canal Commission, Vince was associated with several prominent Houston law firms and continued his community involvement. In the last decade, he has served on various boards and is a founding board member of the Houston Tampico Sister City Association and the Houston Democratic Lawyers Association. He was an active member of the Mark Twain PTO while his sons attended school there and is now active in the Pershing Middle School PTO as his sons continue to move through our public school system. His memberships include: Advisory Board, The Julia Ideson Library Preservation Partners; Mayor's International Advisory Committee for Latin America; Harris County Tejano Democrats, and Mexican American Bar Association (MABAH)

Born in Houston, Vince was raised by loving parents who instilled within him and his three siblings a sense of service to others.

As the Vietnam war raged, a 19-year-old Vince joined ROTC at the University of Houston and upon graduation became an active duty officer in the United States Army, first serving in Europe and then volunteering for service in Vietnam. He was returned to active duty for Operation Just Cause, which ousted the dictator of Panama, in 1990.

After his service in Vietnam, Vince left active duty and attended the University of Houston Law School. His score on the Texas Bar Exam was the fourth highest in Texas. Soon he became active in the Neartown Association. While practicing law, Vince attended Rice University and received a Master's Degree.

He is married to Teresa Pamela (Pam) Rodriguez, originally from San Antonio. Together, they have three sons, twins Andrew and Reed and younger brother Colin Scott.