Ex-Stoughton Detective Seeks Rhode Island Venue as Fetal-Death Arraignment Nears

Overview

• Defense filed a motion to move Matthew Farwell’s federal trial to Providence, citing what it calls prejudicial saturation of Massachusetts news coverage.
• Farwell remains held without bail in a Rhode Island facility and has pleaded not guilty to killing a witness or victim, with his attorneys saying he will plead not guilty to the fetal-death charge at a hearing this week.
• Prosecutors allege Farwell strangled Sandra Birchmore in February 2021 after grooming her through the Stoughton Police Explorers program when she was a minor.
• A superseding indictment added a count for causing the death of Birchmore’s unborn child, which carries potential capital punishment, and the Justice Department must decide by Jan. 20, 2026 whether to seek the death penalty.
• The case, revived after Birchmore’s death was first ruled a suicide, is set for trial on Oct. 5, 2026, with filings detailing alleged on-duty sexual encounters, falsified hours, and escalating conflict after she disclosed her pregnancy.