Assistant District Attorney Matt Weintraub speaking about heroin in 2014.
Credit: Tom Sofield/NewtownPANow.com
Longtime prosecutor Matt Weintraub will be Bucks County’s next district attorney.
Bucks County’s judges on Wednesday chose Weintraub to fill the remaining term of recently retired District Attorney Dave Heckler.
“I’m ecstatic about it,” Weintraub told NewtownPANow.com shortly after the news trickled down from the Justice Center in Doylestown.
A date for Weintraub’s swearing-in has not yet been announced but will likely be scheduled for next week. Weintraub said he wants his family to be in attendance as he becomes Bucks County’s chief law enforcement official.
Weintraub, currently Bucks County’s chief of prosecution, has worked for the district attorney’s office for two stints that equal 13 1/2 years.
When Heckler announced his retirement last month, he said he felt Weintraub was well suited for the position and stated the final decision on who to appoint was up to the judges.
Weintraub, a Republican, confirmed Wednesday the longtime Doylestown whispers that he plans to run for district attorney next year. “No doubt about it,” he said.
Weintraub is a graduate of William Tennent High School in Warminster and Temple University Law School in Philadelphia. He first interned in the district attorney’s office in 1992 before being hired full-time in 1993. He eventually left the office for other employment and was hired back in 2011. He currently oversees all criminal prosecution, including major crimes.
“I so happy to be in the position to help everybody in the office continue to succeed,” Weintraub said, adding he wouldn’t let anyone down.
In his application to the judges, Weintraub included a cover letter, resume, 26 recommendations, an article he had published in a statewide magazine and his 1992 intern acceptance letter.
Weintraub has become a recognizable face in Bucks County towns as he has met with community members to talk about the heroin epidemic and also spearheaded efforts to increase DUI enforcement. Earlier this year, the incoming-district attorney recalled to reporters the deaths of four high school classmates who died in an Upper Southampton DUI crash in 1985. The deaths have had an impact on his efforts to curb intoxicated driving.
Since Heckler’s retirement, Deputy District Attorney Michelle Henry has overseen the office.
When asked what he planned to change or improve in the district attorney’s office, Weintraub chuckled and said he was still catching his breath.
