STOUGHTON, MASS. (WHDH) - Former Stoughton police officer Matthew Farwell is renewing his request for release from jail.
Farwell is accused of killing Sandra Birchmore and her unborn child in 2021 to cover up their sexual relationship.
He has been held at a detention center in Rhode Island since the FBI arrested him in August 2024. Prosecutors said he began sexually exploiting Birchmore when she was 15 in the Stoughton Police Department’s mentoring program.
Officials say he strangled Birchmore to death to keep her from revealing their relationship and her pregnancy.
DNA tests previously confirmed Farwell was not the father of her child.
In a court filing Thursday night, the defense noted that an unnamed man fathered Birchmore’s unborn son.
Farwell’s attorney is asking for his 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 defense argue s he is not a flight risk and does not pose a danger to the public.
(Copyright (c) 2026 Sunbeam Television. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)