BOSTON — A judge has denied a request to move the upcoming murder trial of former Stoughton police officer Matthew Farwell out of Massachusetts.
Farwell is accused of killing 23-year-old Birchmore back in 2021 inside her Canton home and staging it to look like a suicide.
His team filed the request on Monday. They cited the extensive media coverage of Sandra Birchmore’s death as an obstacle to ensuring a fair trial.
“The reporting on this case has fostered – and continues to foster – widespread public belief that Mr. Farwell is guilty of multiple crimes, including abusing a law enforcement position of trust, of ‘grooming’ Ms. Birchmore and having sex with her while she was a minor, and killing her and ‘staging’ her death as a suicide,” Farwell’s legal team writes.
However, a judge stated that the defense “has not met the high burden of demonstrating that pretrial publicity would prevent [Mr. Farwell] from receiving a fair trial in this District.”
Prosecutors say Birchmore was pregnant, and her relationship with Farwell began when she was under 18 and part of the Stoughton Police Explorers Program.
Farwell has been in prison since August 2024 and is charged with her murder and causing the death of Birchmore’s unborn child.
A previous court filing requested that Farwell’s trial be moved out of Boston. In late 2025, federal prosecutors announced that they wouldn’t seek the death penalty.
Farwell has pleaded not guilty to both charges.
The judge presiding over the case has scheduled the start of Farwell’s trial for Oct. 5, 2026.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.
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