Judge weighing whether to dismiss charges against ex-Stoughton officer Matthew Farwell
BOSTON — A federal judge heard arguments Thursday on a motion to dismiss the charges against a former Stoughton police officer accused of killing a woman he began sexually abusing when she was a teen.
Matthew Farwell is accused of killing Sandra Birchmore in her Canton apartment in 2021 to prevent her from revealing to law enforcement that he committed federal crimes, including wire fraud for having sex with Birchmore while on duty, according to a federal indictment. Farwell is also accused of causing the death of Birchmore's unborn son, whom she believed Farwell fathered.
The Thursday morning hearing drew a small crowd to the federal courthouse downtown, including Birchmore supporters. U.S. Attorney Leah Foley watched the proceedings from the public gallery.
Farwell attended the hearing in a khaki prison jumpsuit and white sneakers. His hands and legs were shackled as he was brought in and out of the courtroom. He spoke only to address Chief U.S. District Judge Denise Casper, who is presiding over the case.
Joanne Daley, a federal public defender representing Farwell, argued Thursday that the indictment against him is defective in two ways. The document does not indicate that Birchmore intended to communicate with a federal officer, a key element of the crime, and does not provide enough detail about that possible message, she said.
She repeatedly noted that the indictment leaves out the phrase — "of the United States" — when referring to a law enforcement officer or judge.
"In omitting this, the indictment is fatally defective‚" Daley said, adding that the grand jury that returned the indictment may not have known the law applied only to federal law enforcement. "It's worth noting the charges in this case were presented not once but twice, and both times, the necessary statutory language was omitted."
This photo provided by the Stoughton, Mass., Police Department shows Matthew Farwell, a former police officer who pleaded not guilty Wednesday, Aug. 28, 2024, to charges of killing a woman he is accused of sexually exploiting when she was underage and then trying to stage the death as a suicide after she told him she was pregnant. (Stoughton Police Department via AP)AP
Farwell is charged with killing a witness or victim and protection of unborn children . The first charge is death-penalty eligible, but prosecutors will not pursue death in Farwell's case at the direction of U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi.
His defense argued in court papers that because the indictment on the first charge is insufficient, the second must also be thrown out. The law only permits prosecution if the person has committed some other specific crime, like killing a witness or victim, Daley said.
"If Congress intended to criminalize the death of a child in utero in any circumstance, it wouldn't have limited (the law) to specific crimes," she said.
Daley noted the indictment mentions just one communication — a call from a friend of Birchmore's to Stoughton police on Jan. 20, 2021, where the friend reported Birchmore and Farwell had been having sex.
That "begs the question," she said. "How can the defendant and the court identify a federal nexus in this case?"
Casper occasionally interjected to ask Daley questions. In one instance, she pressed the defense lawyer on whether it could be assumed the communication would be to a federal law enforcement officer because it concerned a federal crime.
Daley countered that there was "no language in the indictment (that) the report was to federal law enforcement, and no inference it would have been." She argued Farwell shouldn't be left to guess about the communication he is accused of killing Birchmore to prevent.
Sandra Birchmore, of Canton, died in 2021 and Massachusetts officials ruled her death a suicide. On Wednesday, Aug. 28, 2024, federal authorities charged former Stoughton police officer Matthew Farwell with killing Birchmore. Bichmore is pictured here in a photograph from Facebook.Sandra Birchmore via Facebook
But Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian Fogerty argued that the statute defines a law enforcement officer as a federal law enforcement officer.
There is "no risk that that term includes anyone outside that universe," he said, adding that there is no requirement an indictment must cite a specific law to define law enforcement.
Fogerty argued the indictment provided enough notice to Farwell about the substance of the crimes, telling Casper, "the notice is there, the federal law enforcement officer, the federal offenses, those are there."
At trial, prosecutors would provide more evidence to support their claim that Birchmore would have communicated to federal law enforcement, specifically the FBI, he said.
"The Court at this point should apply the presumption of regularity and shouldn't police instructions to the grand jury," Fogerty said.
The law Farwell is accused of breaking specifically allows for charges to be brought in situations where a person is killed before they can make a communication, as is the case for Birchmore, Fogerty said.
But Daley countered that killing a person before there is "an inclination they report" a crime is murder, which she noted is not a federal offense.
The indictment "needs to show something beyond a hypothetical that this would have been reported," she said.
Casper said she would consider the issue further and did not immediately issue a ruling.
Farwell was indicted by the federal government in August 2024 , more than three years after Birchmore's death. The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner ruled her death a suicide, and local prosecutors declined to bring charges against Farwell.
More news about the Sandra Birchmore case
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