BOSTON (WHDH) - Testimony resumed for the sixth day in the Matthew Farwell trial Tuesday, where Sandra Birchmore’s obstetrician-gynecologist (OB/GYN) took the stand to speak about the health of Birchmore and her unborn baby.
Farwell is charged with killing 23-year-old Sandra Birchmore and her unborn child and staging the death to look like a suicide. Prosecutors allege Farwell killed her to stop her from exposing federal crimes, including sexual exploitation of a child. They claim Farwell had been grooming her for sex since she was 15 years old and was part of the Stoughton Police Explorers mentoring program.
Farwell’s defense says Birchmore killed herself after he came over and told her he was breaking up with her, and told her he wouldn’t sign a birtch certificate naming him as father of the child.
Birchmore’s OB/GYN testified that two weeks before she died, the baby she was carrying appeared just more than six weeks old. When the prosecution asked if the fetus had a heartbeat, Birchmore’s doctor answered, “Yes. It was a viable pregnancy.”
The OB/GYN also said she prescribed Birchmore Zoloft to help her deal with longtime anxiety, but said Birchmore scored zero on a test to measure suicidal tendencies. When she heard Birchmore was dead, reportedly by suicide, the doctor testified, “I was surprised. We had no indications of her destabilizing when we last communicated.”
Under defense questioning, the OB/GYN acknowledged Birchmore did have a longtime history of chronic anxiety and depression, listed for insurance purposes, and her pregnancy was considered high-risk in part because of her mental health challenges.
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