BOSTON — Former Stoughton Police Detective Matthew Farwell was back in federal court on Tuesday as prosecutors push to keep him behind bars ahead of trial. The detective is accused of killing 23-year-old Sandra Birchmore back in 2021 inside her Canton home and staging her death to look like a suicide.
Prosecutors say Birchmore was pregnant with Farwell’s child and that their relationship began when she was under 18 and part of the Stoughton Police Explorers Program.
Birchmore’s death was initially ruled a suicide before a forensic pathologist later determined she died by homicidal strangulation.
“I read the motions a few times each and from both sides, listening to both sides, they both gave good arguments,” Birchmore’s cousin, Barbara Wright, told Boston 25 News.
Farwell’s defense team argues Birchmore had a history of mental health struggles. They say his ties to the community support releasing him before trial, but prosecutors push back--saying Birchmore had no motivation to take her life and pointed to her pregnancy and plans to seek legal counsel for a future without Farwell.
Prosecutors also point to new data from Farwell’s phone, saying his use of a private search engine to look up Birchmore and the investigation suggests an effort to conceal activity.
They also claim his online history after her death included pornographic content referencing teenage girls--arguing that he poses a danger and may be a flight risk, Farwell has pleaded not guilty.
“It’s tough, it’s really tough we’ve waited a long time for justice and Sandra and her unborn son, certainly do deserve it,” said Wright. “I have full faith in the prosecutors that they’re going to get what we want and we want him to stay behind bars.”
A judge will now review the arguments. A trial is scheduled for October.
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