Ex-Officer Matthew Farwell Convicted of Killing Pregnant Sandra Birchmore in Staged-Suicide Case
A federal jury in Boston on Tuesday convicted former Stoughton police officer Matthew Farwell of killing Sandra Birchmore, a 23-year-old pregnant woman he had sexually abused since she was a teenager, and of causing the death of her unborn child. The verdict closes a federal trial that revisited a death state investigators first ruled a suicide nearly six years ago.
Jurors found Farwell, 41, guilty on both federal counts he faced: killing a witness or victim, and causing the death of a child in utero. He faces a mandatory life sentence. Sentencing is scheduled for February 3, 2027. Federal prosecutors did not seek the death penalty.
The verdict came a day after the jury of eight men and four women told Chief U.S. District Judge Denise Casper it was deadlocked. When jurors returned on Tuesday morning, Casper encouraged them to take as much time as they needed. They returned guilty verdicts after roughly 14 hours of deliberations in total, following more than three weeks of testimony from 50 witnesses.
What prosecutors said happened
Prosecutors said Farwell strangled Birchmore in her Canton apartment on February 1, 2021, and staged the scene to look like a suicide by hanging. The state medical examiner, relying partly on information from police, initially ruled her death a suicide. Federal prosecutors took up the case three years later, and Farwell was arrested in August 2024.
The government’s case was that Farwell killed Birchmore to keep her from telling authorities that he had sexually abused her since she was 15. Birchmore had taken part in the Stoughton Police Explorers program, a youth program in which Farwell served as an instructor. Under federal law, jurors had to find that Farwell killed her specifically to stop her from reporting a federal crime to authorities.
Prosecutors said Birchmore, who was 10 weeks pregnant, had told Farwell she was expecting his child and expected him to be involved in the child’s life. Both believed at the time that he was the father. DNA testing later showed the father was Jason Pickard, an Army Reserve sergeant who testified at the trial. Prosecutors said the killing came the day before Farwell’s third child was born.
In opening statements, Assistant U.S. Attorney Torey B. Cummings told jurors: “He was supposed to be mentoring her in an after-school program run by the police department, but, instead, he was having sex with her when she was underage.” Prosecutors said the relationship continued for eight years, often while Farwell was on duty.
The evidence that convinced the jury
Among the key evidence was surveillance video from the lobby of Birchmore’s apartment building, showing her and then Farwell — wearing a mask and a hood — heading to her apartment on the day she died. Prosecutors also pointed to DNA evidence they said linked Farwell to the strap found around Birchmore’s neck, and to testimony from a strangulation expert about a fractured hyoid bone in her neck, which the defense had disputed as consistent with hanging.
FBI Special Agent Heidi Kelsch testified about explicit text messages exchanged between the two, including messages in which Farwell described taking Birchmore’s virginity when she was 15, according to trial coverage.
Farwell pleaded not guilty. His lawyers acknowledged that he had an extramarital relationship with Birchmore but argued she took her own life after he ended the relationship that night and told her he was not the father of her baby. Farwell did not testify in his own defense.
People cried in the courtroom gallery and Birchmore’s family and friends embraced after the verdict was read, according to a report by WCVB. U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts Leah Foley spoke at a news conference after the verdict on Tuesday afternoon.
Background: a death reclassified
Birchmore’s death was first investigated as a suicide. Her family disputed that finding for years, and federal authorities eventually retained their own medical examiner, who disagreed with the original ruling. The case became a federal prosecution rather than a state murder case because prosecutors charged Farwell with killing a witness to prevent her from reporting a federal crime — a charge that carries a mandatory life sentence — along with a separate count for the death of her unborn child under 18 U.S.C. Section 1841, which also carries mandatory life.
Farwell was first indicted in August 2024 in connection with Birchmore’s death. In October 2025, he was indicted on the additional count of causing the death of her unborn son. He has remained in federal custody since his arrest.
The trial began in Boston’s federal court in early October 2026, with jury selection followed by opening statements. Deliberations began on Friday, November 6, after closing arguments. The jury sent two notes on Monday, November 9, saying it was deadlocked, before the judge instructed jurors to continue their work on Tuesday.
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Birchmore’s estate has filed a civil lawsuit against the Town of Stoughton, Farwell and others. A hearing in that case is set for after the federal trial ends. No state murder charges have been filed against Farwell.
Why this matters
The conviction is a rare federal reckoning for a police officer accused of using his position to groom a teenager and then killing her to silence her. The case exposed how a death initially classified as a suicide — by the same local system in which the accused served — went unchallenged for more than three years until federal prosecutors intervened.
It also illustrates the reach of federal witness-tampering law. Because murder is generally prosecuted by the state where it occurred, prosecutors built the case around Farwell’s alleged motive: preventing Birchmore from reporting a federal crime. That framing allowed the case to proceed in federal court and carried a mandatory life sentence on conviction.
For law enforcement agencies, the verdict lands alongside renewed scrutiny of youth programs run by police departments and of how departments handle complaints against their own officers. The Stoughton Police Department has not commented publicly on the verdict.
Latest developments
- The jury returned guilty verdicts on both counts on Tuesday, November 10, after about 14 hours of deliberation across three days.
- U.S. Attorney Leah Foley held a news conference in Boston on Tuesday afternoon following the verdict.
- Sentencing is set for February 3, 2027. Farwell faces a mandatory life sentence and remains in custody.
- Birchmore’s estate’s civil lawsuit against the Town of Stoughton, Farwell and others is set for a hearing after the federal trial concludes.
- In other court news this week, actor Russell Brand was sentenced to 10 years and six months in a U.K. court after being convicted of rape and sexual assault.
The verdict came the same day a suspect in the largest jewelry heist in U.S. history agreed to plead guilty in a Los Angeles federal court, in a separate case that also ended with a federal plea agreement rather than a trial.
Frequently asked questions
Who is Matthew Farwell?
Matthew Farwell, 41, is a former police detective with the Stoughton Police Department in Massachusetts. He was an instructor in the department’s Police Explorers youth program. A federal jury in Boston convicted him on November 10, 2026, of killing Sandra Birchmore and causing the death of her unborn child.
Who was Sandra Birchmore?
Sandra Birchmore was 23 years old and 10 weeks pregnant when she died on February 1, 2021, in her apartment in Canton, Massachusetts. She had taken part in the Stoughton Police Explorers program as a teenager. Prosecutors said Farwell sexually abused her beginning when she was 15.
Why was Birchmore’s death first ruled a suicide?
The state medical examiner, relying partly on information from police, initially ruled her death a suicide by hanging. Her family disputed the finding. Federal prosecutors later retained their own examiner, who disagreed with the original ruling, and the case was reopened as a homicide investigation.
What sentence does Farwell face?
Farwell faces a mandatory life sentence on the federal charges. Sentencing is scheduled for February 3, 2027. Federal prosecutors did not seek the death penalty.
What happens next
Farwell will be sentenced on February 3, 2027, when Judge Denise Casper will impose the mandatory life term. His lawyers have not said publicly whether they will appeal. The civil lawsuit brought by Birchmore’s estate against the Town of Stoughton and others will move forward after the criminal case concludes, and the verdict is likely to shape how police departments oversee youth programs and investigate deaths involving their own officers.
Sources
- The New England Signal — “Federal jury convicts former Stoughton officer Matthew Farwell of killing Sandra Birchmore” (November 10, 2026)
- NBC Boston — “Verdict in Matthew Farwell trial over Sandra Birchmore’s death” (November 10, 2026)
- U.S. Department of Justice, District of Massachusetts — “Former Stoughton Police Officer Indicted for Allegedly Causing the Death of His Victim’s Unborn Baby”
- Pulptastic — “Disgraced Ex-Cop Matthew Farwell Found Guilty of Killing Pregnant Sandra Birchmore” (November 10, 2026)
- WCVB, Boston 25 News, The Boston Globe, WBUR and Patch, as cited in the above reporting
