Matthew Farwell found guilty in death of Sandra Birchmore

All right, we're coming back on the air here at two o'clock with that breaking news. Matthew Farwell moments ago found guilty on all counts in the death of Sandra Birchmore and her unborn baby. Yesterday, this jury told the judge that they could not reach a unanimous verdict. They were asked to come back today. Start fresh, and it's now 2 o'clock, we are just learning moments ago from our Ryan Breslin in the courtroom that he has been found guilty on two counts of murder, of Sandra Birchmore and of her unborn child. We do want to bring in criminal defense attorney and our legal analyst, Elise Hirschhorn. You had said in the commercial break here when we learned they did reach a verdict, it was likely going to be guilty. Why? I think the evidence that came in was very overwhelming, even leading up to what happened on February 1st, 2021. I think the digital forensic evidence that showed Sandra Birchmore's phone having stopping all activity before Farwell even left means either someone turned it off or she wasn't alive to keep using it. We know she was on her phone a lot. So I think the evidence was overwhelming. I think both sides did a great job. There were bad facts. For the defense to deal with in terms of their relationship and the illicitness of it, dating back to when she was underage. We had talked earlier today, Elyse, you and I, about how often this happens in cases. And you said deadlock juries are not uncommon, but how common is it that they come back and are able to break the deadlock like they did here? It means that, to me, it means that there were not a lot of people that were holding out for an acquittal. It's harder to get 8, 9, 10, 11 people to move over to unanimous than it is 1 or 2. We don't know. It could have been 5. But based on my experience, the majority of the cases, if someone moves off, it's usually 1 or 2 that are holding out. And this person or persons convictions in terms of their feelings of wanting to potentially acquit him or maybe having questions was It was not strong enough to hold out, and they eventually came to agree. And remember that there are three parts to that first part, that first count involving federal crimes. And there was a lot of evidence that came in about their relationship, about him having relations with her when he was on the clock, that wire fraud, all that was with her. Beginning when she was underage and as a police officer, right? All right, Elise, hold that thought for one second. We want to bring in Boston 25's Bob Ward live outside the courthouse right now. Bob, we're just telling our viewers in the last two minutes here that Matthew Farwell has been found guilty on both counts. You've been covering this case to some extent since the very beginning, since Sandra Borchmore was killed in 2021. What do you make of this news today? Well, it's a stunning development, I think, this afternoon because there was no way to figure out over the last few days which way this was going to go, especially after Friday when it seemed like this jury was close to reaching a verdict. And then you flash forward to Monday and you find out they couldn't make a decision and the note indicated that it would be some time before they could to here we are today. And they come back and they convict Matthew Farwell on both counts. In a sense, it's stunning, Kerry, because it happened kind of all of a sudden. We've been here all day waiting for something to take place. I think we anticipated that, like in the Lindsey Clancy case, when we were waiting for that verdict, that there'd be a few more notes probably going back to the judge saying they're still struggling to go through all the evidence. That didn't happen here. We go from one day, it looks like they're close, to another day, we're not close at all, to now. There is a verdict. I just want to show you here. I'm in front of federal court here in South Boston. And right here we have the microphones stand set up. DHS has already come out here and asked us to not approach anyone coming out the front door, to let people come over to the microphones if they wish to speak. And yesterday I was here, Kerry, and there were supporters of Sandra Birchmore who came out and they talked about how disappointed they were that it felt like that This jury could not reach a decision that appeared they were deadlocked. They were getting very emotional talking about the possibility that they might have to go through this all over again. But here we are less than 24 hours later and there is a verdict. Guilty on all counts. Bob, Ryan Breslin was in the courtroom yesterday when the jury had come back and said they were deadlocked. And he said family members of Sandra Birchmore were crying in that courtroom and he said you could hear a pin drop. And I think one of them described it yesterday like he was taking a brick to the gut when they heard that news. Obviously, a stunning reversal less than 24 hours later. There has to be a sense of relief after hearing that verdict read in the courtroom here just moments ago. We are also standing by. I understand, Bob, we're also standing by for an update from the U.S. Attorney's Office. They're expected to give a press conference here this afternoon as well. This has been a very challenging case, and certainly for, say, Stoughton Police, they have featured heavily in this as well. What's been sort of the reaction that you've seen when it comes to law enforcement in this? Well, law enforcement's paying very close attention to what happened here. I think the people that are not in the circle of the events that took place here with Sandra Birchmore, they're watching this just like we are, trying to get a sense of what happened here, why did it happen this way, why is it that the feds are prosecuting this murder and not in superior court, this is not on a state level. When I talk to other people and other law enforcement around the state, They have the exact same questions and concerns that we have. All right, Bob, well, thank you for that. Stand by, Bob. We'll come back to you here in just a minute. And Ryan is up there in the courtroom. He'll be coming out and joining you here shortly, as I understand it. I understand that we have the verdict sheet just in. Are we able to show that here on air? So this is the verdict sheet. Killing a witness or victim guilty and causing the death of an unborn child. Guilty on both of those counts here in just the last 10 minutes this afternoon. So interesting, Elise, and the murder charge... Involving Sandra Birchmore, it was also with intent to keep someone from telling police about other improprieties. Absolutely, and at the time, we have to remember, she told Farwell, and the evidence came in that shows that she told Farwell that it was his baby. So it's not a far leap to come to this federal nexus piece if they believed that the prosecution proved that Farwell killed her. It's not a far leap to say, well, it was to... ...cover up the fact that the baby itself would be telling on him for their illicit relationship. Now remember, we know now it's not his baby, but it's about what his state of mind was at the time that now he's convicted of killing Sandra Birchmore and the baby. This is a federal case. What happens next? We're so accustomed to seeing these cases in state court, but this is at the federal level. What would you expect to happen next? There is going to be a sentencing hearing. It's usually not on the same day, but federal court for these charges, similarly to first degree in state court, is a mandatory life without parole sentence. So although there's a sentencing hearing and they may provide some, you know, there's going to be a victim witness impact statement, excuse me. So there will be an opportunity for Sandra Birchmore's family and friends and anybody who wants to make a statement. Unlike other types of charges, this charge, just like first-degree murder in state court, the judge does not have any discretion here. Farwell is going to be facing a mandatory life sentence and not have the chance at parole. February 3rd, our producer Matt is telling us in our ear, is the date that they have earmarked in the courtroom for sentencing. I want to back up here and pause and talk a little bit about the victim here, Sandra Birchmore, if we can. We understand it came into the life of Matthew Farwell and other members of the Stoughton Police Department at the very young age of 13. It was a cadet program called the Explorers Program. It's a program that many police departments offer all over the country, an opportunity for young people to come into police departments, learn about law enforcement, learn about their role. Maybe it's a place for some people like Sandra Birchmore to find some direction, to find some mentors. She had a hard youth growing up. She lost her mom and grandmother at a very young age. It is this person who meets Matthew Farwell in this program and within a couple of years from what we learned through text messages and even testimony, they're in a sexual relationship by the time she is the age 15. And now here we are, he's convicted of murdering her. And not to be forgotten that that is woven in here to the charges. So instead of just being charged with her murder, the murder is tied to three types of federal offenses they call under the color of federal law. Sexual act while on the job, grooming and sexual abuse, and abusing his authority as a police officer. So tying in, it's tying in from the very start of their relationship all the way to the end of her life. And it is a... powerful way to charge her and it's it's the jury has spoken. Again, February 3rd is when he'll be sentenced, and we are standing by for comments from both the U.S. Attorney's Office as well as from anybody inside the courtroom. Exiting the courthouse there, you saw the podium set up with microphones next to Bob Ward. We'll be watching to see if anybody comes out, maybe from Sandra Birchmore's family, makes a statement. Matthew Farwell's family, perhaps, comes forward, makes any sort of statement. And Ryan has said he wasn't very clear if there were any supporters of Farwell in the courtroom. We don't know definitively, but he wasn't able to really make that out. We'll be telling to see if his attorneys or someone does speak on his behalf. You know, another wrinkle in this case that you thought yesterday could have been hanging up this jury was the death certificate. Medical examiner originally rules this case as suicide and they close it initially quite quickly. And then it's reopened, reexamined. It wasn't until this year. I mean, five years later, they changed that cause of death from suicide to undetermined. And like you said yesterday, there was no documents showing. Scientifically, she was murdered. Absolutely. I mean, this is another stain on the investigation and police department within Norfolk County, the state police department, where they're investigating. This is Karen Reid territory. And she was acquitted, although first having been accused. And Matthew Farrell was convicted after first having been acquitted or not even acquitted. seen as a suspect by Norfolk County and their investigators so this just adds more discredit to that county and to the investigators there. Certainly I think the death certificate itself created a question for how she died because if a medical examiner who's trained as a forensic pathologist cannot determine from a body what the death was or initially determining it as suicide, How would a jury decide? The digital forensics, I really think, were so strong here. And they questioned her, right, about that, at least? Like, how often do you change your cause of death, and especially from this to that? And the answer was not very common. Rarely. Right, very rare, and not even changing it to homicide. They didn't go that far. They came to the middle undetermined. So going into it, they didn't have that already decided by an expert and just having to look at the elements of the crime. They had to look at this. Was this a murder to begin with?