District Attorney-Elect Matthew Scott will take the oath of office on Thursday, January 3 at 5:30 p.m. When he does, he’ll officially become the first American Indian district attorney in North Carolina.
Scott will be serving the citizens of Robeson County.
The swearing-in will take place on the campus of UNC Pembroke, at the Givens Performing Arts Center according to Jackie Clark of UNC Pembroke.
Clark says UNC Pembroke was the first state-supported higher educational institution in the United States established to educate American Indians. “This is sure to be a historical event,” Clark wrote in a press release sent to News13.
According to Scott’s campaign website, he is a lifelong resident of Robeson County and a graduate of Purnell Swett High School in Maxton. He joined the U.S. Army after September 11, 2001. After serving our country as a paratrooper and JAG Attorney for eight years, Scott joined the Robeson County District Attorney’s Office.
Scott will be replacing longtime district attorney Johnson Britt, who started in that role in 1994. Britt became an Assistant District Attorney serving Robeson County in 1989.
With weeks left in his role as District Attorney, Britt recently criticized the handling of a 2016 rape case that he believes would have prevented the 2018 murder of Hania Aguilar, of Lumberton. Days later, new Robeson County Sheriff Burnis Wilkins announced the suspensions of two sheriff’s office employees, including the former chief of detectives.