STOUGHTON, MASS. (WHDH) - A federal judge ruled Tuesday that former Stoughton police officer Matthew Farwell will remain behind bars as he awaits trial over the death of Sandra Birchmore. His trial is set to begin in October.
The ruling comes after a judge also denied a motion to suppress evidence in his trial.
Farwell requested to be released on bail in April, with his defense team citing no prior criminal record and the fact that he does not pose a flight risk or a danger to community. Farwell’s defense team said he conducted himself like an innocent man in the years after Birchmore’s death, which they maintain is a suicide.
Prosecutors argued that phone data showed Farwell accessed pornography indicating a sexual interest in teenage girls after Birchmore’s death. They also said the former officer wrote a goodbye letter to a friend when people suggested the case could have been a homicide.
Farwell has been held at a detention center in Rhode Island since the FBI arrested him in August 2024, and Tuesday’s ruling means he will remain there until his trial begins.
Farwell is accused of killing 23-year-old Sandra Birchmore and her unborn child at her Canton apartment in 2021 to cover up their sexual relationship. Prosecutors said Farwell groomed Birchmore for sex starting when she was 15-years-old and part of the Stoughton Police Department’s mentorship program.
Farwell has pleaded not guilty to all charges.
(Copyright (c) 2026 Sunbeam Television. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)