Gov. Kevin Stitt has appointed Jennifer Pointer Austin as the next district attorney for District 21, which includes Cleveland, Garvin, and McClain counties, according to a press release sent out on Thursday.

Austin has served as a prosecutor for more than two decades, beginning her career in the Oklahoma County District Attorney’s Office, where she was a founding member of the Domestic Violence Prosecution Team, the release said. She later joined District 21 under current District Attorney Greg Mashburn, where she worked on the Major Crimes Team and the Special Victims’ Team, prosecuting cases involving child and adult sexual abuse, according to the release.

In 2022, Austin was named First Assistant District Attorney for District 21, managing daily operations while continuing to prosecute homicide cases, the release stated. Her efforts have earned her multiple honors, including the Mary Abbott Children's House Wayne Martin Memorial Award, the Oklahoma District Attorneys Association’s Outstanding Prosecutor of the Year 2016, and the Oklahoma Bar Association Criminal Law Section’s Professional Advocate Award, the release said.

Austin is a Norman native with a Bachelor of Arts in political science from Oklahoma State University and a Juris Doctorate from Oklahoma City University School of Law, earned in 1998, according to the release. She resides in Norman with her husband, Jeff, and their two children, Sydney and Jack, the release said.

Austin’s appointment will take effect March 1, 2025, following Mashburn’s retirement, the release stated.