STOUGHTON, MASS. (WHDH) – Prosecutors are using phone data to argue that Matthew Farwell, a former Stoughton police officer, should remain in jail ahead of his murder trial that is expected to begin in October.
In a new filing, prosecutors claim material on Farwell’s phone shows he accessed pornography indicating a sexual interest in teenage girls. They also said a note in his phone suggests he might be a flight risk, or otherwise not appear for trial.
Prosecutors also argue Farwell took steps to hide searches he made about the victim.
The filing comes after Farwell’s defense team renewed a request to release him from jail in March. Farwell’s attorney asked for his client’s release from jail on $50,000 bond while he awaits trial, requesting home confinement with GPS monitoring and submission to drug and alcohol testing. His attorney argues he is not a flight risk and does not pose a danger to the public.
Farwell is accused of strangling and killing 23-year-old Sandra Birchmore, who was pregnant at the time, in her Canton apartment in 2021. Federal prosecutors argue he then staged her death to make it look like she committed suicide. He was also later indicted in the death of Birchmore’s unborn baby.
Authorities said Farwell began a sexual relationship with Birchmore when she was 15-years-old and a student in his class for young people interested in law enforcement careers.
Court documents from earlier this month say Farwell’s DNA was found on the strap used to stage Birchmore’s suicide five years ago.
Farwell has been held at a detention center in Rhode Island since the FBI arrested him in August 2024.
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