| E. Bert Riddle | |
| Birth Date: | 17 September 1893 |
| Office1: | Member of the Florida House of Representatives from Holmes County |
| Term1: | 1921 |
| Office2: | Member of the Florida House of Representatives from Walton County |
| Term2: | 1941 |
| Term Start3: | 1961 |
| Term End3: | May 24, 1961 |
| Office4: | Member of the Florida Senate from the 3rd district |
| Term Start4: | 1945 |
| Term End4: | 1947 |
| Party: | Democratic |
E. Bert Riddle (September 17, 1893 – March 17, 1979) was an American politician. He served as a Democratic member of the Florida House of Representatives.[1] He also served as a member for the 3rd district of the Florida Senate.[2]
Riddle was arrested on moral charges in October 1947 for improper conduct towards a 12-year-old girl in a school where he was the principal.[3] He had already resigned as principal at the time of his arrest. He was tried the same month on October 23, found guilty and sentenced to three years in prison.[4] He appealed the sentence to the Florida Supreme court and in January 1948 he qualified to stand for re-election to the senate.[5] He lost both his bid for re-election and his appeal June 1948.[6]
In January 1960 Riddle declared that he was going to run again for his senate seat,[7] but in May he lost to Clyde Galloway.[8] He then stood again for the House in the 1961 special general election in Broward County, Florida[9] which he won in February.[10]
Riddle was expelled unanimously from the House on May 24, 1961 after being accused of sending an indecent note to a 12-year-old female page.[11] He was taken into custody by the police upon leaving the chamber but was later released with no formal charges.[12]
He died on March 17, 1979, at the age of 65 at his home in Holmes County, Florida. He was survived by his wife, Ethel Riddle, and seven of his children.[13]