Bucks County DA Matt Weintraub plans to run for judge in the fall

Bucks County District Attorney Matt Weintraub announced Friday that he will run for a county judgeship this fall, a move that would end his tenure as the county’s top prosecutor.

Weintraub, 54, told his staff of his intentions on Wednesday and made his plans public Friday.

If he ascends to the bench, he said, he would nominate his first assistant, Jennifer Schorn, to replace him.

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Weintraub declined to comment on his decision. Should he win, he would follow the path taken by two Bucks County judges who previously served as district attorney, Diane Gibbons and Alan Rubenstein.

Of his decision to appoint Schorn to replace him, he said, “This way, the county gets a fantastic district attorney, while I continue to serve the public as a judge. It’s a win-win.”

Weintraub, who took office in 2016, won reelection in November 2021, beating Antonetta Stancu, a former prosecutor in his office. The victory made him the only sitting Republican district attorney in the Philadelphia suburbs, a feat that political observers attributed to his popularity and recognition among Bucks County voters.

Weintraub’s first term was marked by several high-profile prosecutions, including that of Cosmo DiNardo, who was convicted of killing four young men on a farm in Solebury Township in 2017 and sentenced to life in prison. The case drew international attention and made Weintraub a fixture in the media.

In choosing Schorn to replace him as interim district attorney, Weintraub has selected a career prosecutor who has handled high-profile cases in recent years, including the prosecution of several cold-case murders. She is currently overseeing the case against James Carey, a former Warminster police officer who entered a no-contest plea to sexually assaulting five teenage boys over two decades.

“I predict that with her leadership and dedication to our mission, Jen will far exceed me as Bucks County District Attorney, and it’s not fair for me to stand in her way any longer,” Weintraub said. “She’s ready, and so am I.”