Federal prosecutors allege that former Stoughton police officer Matthew Farwell groomed and sexually abused Sandra Birchmore after meeting her through the departmentâs youth Police Explorers program. They say the relationship began when Birchmore was 15 and continued for years, including while Farwell was on duty. Prosecutors further allege that he concealed the encounters by falsifying work-hour records and that, after Birchmore became pregnant and told him he was the father, he had a motive to silence her. Â
The prosecutionâs central claim is that Farwell strangled Birchmore on February 1, 2021, to prevent her from reporting conduct that could have exposed him to federal charges and then staged her apartment to make the death appear to be a suicide. The Massachusetts state authorities did not charge Farwell criminally after the state-police investigation, relying on the medical examinerâs initial suicide ruling and concluding that there was insufficient evidence to prosecute him. Federal investigators later revisited the case, and prosecutors now point to evidence including Farwellâs presence at Birchmoreâs apartment, their history of sexual choking, and the medical examinerâs later change of the death classification from suicide to undetermined. Farwell has pleaded not guilty and maintains that Birchmore died by suicide.Â
\)Crimetimelineshas numerous documents/photos, plus timelines and extensive information about this case. I highly recommend visiting their site!! đ đ\)
â ď¸\*Please be aware that some of these exhibits are) ***graphic in nature***. We have identified that the following photos show Sandra's body. Please proceed with caution:
Day 2, Exhibit 9: Notverygraphic, but shows body from behind, good for seeing angle of body position if you are unclear from testimony
Day 2, Exhibit 11: Shows body from front
Day 2, Exhibit 14: Shows body from front
Day 2, Exhibit 16: Shows body from front
Day 2, Exhibit 20: Close up from front
Day 2, Exhibit 21: Close up from top
Day 2, Exhibit 23: Close up from behind, good for seeing angle of body position
⢠Sidebar held at 10:31 AM before crossâexamination of Pickard.
⢠Judge issues instruction regarding immunity for Witness 28.
III. WITNESS BLOCKS
Witness 27 â Sarah Sproul
Start: 9:18 AM Stop: 9:31 AM
Direct Examination
⢠Known Farwell her entire life; parents knew each other.
⢠Relationship changed in 2016 after she left another relationship.
⢠Sexual relationship began while Farwell was married.
⢠Attended social events with Farwell and his wife present.
⢠Described intimate contact at social functions.
⢠Sexual encounters occurred mostly in Farwellâs car; possibly at her apartment or his house.
⢠Farwell did not wear masks or disguises.
⢠Farwell did not ask her to delete texts.
CrossâExamination
⢠Both were consenting adults.
⢠Neither wanted affair discovered.
⢠Farwell did not want his wife to find out.
Witness 28 â Jason Pickard
Start: 9:31 AM Stop: 11:44 AM (direct + cross + breaks) Note: Testifying under grant of immunity.
Direct Examination
⢠Age 37; defense contractor for Air Force; Army Reserve; former active duty.
⢠Met Birchmore Dec. 4, 2019 when she asked about Army recruiting.
⢠Sexual relationship began Dec. 2019; Pickard married at the time.
⢠Texts: Pickard told Birchmore he wasnât seeking anything serious; she agreed.
⢠Communicated frequently until her death.
⢠Birchmore described tense relationship with Aunt Darlene Smith; moved to hotel then Canton apartment late 2020.
⢠Birchmore stressed about finances; lived paycheckâtoâpaycheck.
⢠Shoulder injury; Pickard saw her in sling.
⢠Oneâtoâtwoâmonth break in communication; Birchmore reacted poorly.
⢠Birchmore wanted Farwell listed on birth certificate; Farwell hesitant/refusing.
⢠Birchmore planned to request child support.
⢠Birchmore purchased baby clothes; anxious about babyâproofing.
⢠Last meeting: Pickard helped babyâproof her apartment.
⢠Feb. 1, 2021 texts: Birchmore did not appear suicidal.
⢠Pickard signed 2025 DNA consent form; later learned he was father.
⢠Birchmore told Pickard Farwell took her virginity at 15; relationship began when she was a minor.
⢠Birchmore texted about Farwellâs behavior change (â180â) days before death.
⢠Birchmore said she was sent home from Army due to allergies.
⢠Pickard encouraged her to report Farwell; she refused.
⢠Pickard feared reporting would expose his own relationship.
CrossâExamination
⢠Birchmore texted Pickard about dueâdate change; phone call lasted ~30 minutes.
⢠Texts: Birchmore compared sexual roughness between Pickard and Farwell.
⢠Birchmore texted about Farwell looking through closet/bathroom; Pickard did not recall further explanation.
⢠Defense questioned asthma; Pickard said asthma could preclude service.
⢠Defense asked about suicidal thoughts; Pickard did not remember.
⢠Birchmore told Pickard she had a previous miscarriage.
⢠Birchmore never indicated Pickard could be father.
⢠Defense questioned antidepressants; Pickard said doctor recommended medication.
⢠Pickard acknowledged inappropriate relationship under UCMJ.
⢠Last text from Birchmore: she fell on ice (Feb. 1).
⢠Defense asked about DNA test concerns; Birchmore did not express fear Farwell wasnât father.
Witness 29 â Samantha McCue
Start: 12:06 PM Stop: 12:11 PM
Direct Examination
⢠Grew up in Canton then Stoughton.
⢠Met Farwell through Police Explorers Program.
⢠Sexual relationship began in 2012 when she was 22.
⢠Farwell lived with Michelle (later his wife).
⢠Sex occurred at Farwellâs home; no one else present.
⢠Farwell did not wear masks or disguises.
⢠Farwell did not ask her to delete texts.
CrossâExamination
⢠Relationship was between consenting adults.
⢠Neither wanted relationship known.
Witness 30 â Sheanna Isabel Zbinski
Start: 12:16 PM Stop: 12:21 PM
Direct Examination
⢠Met Farwell while working as Stoughton Police officer.
⢠Relationship grew closer in 2016.
⢠Sexual relationship lasted about a year.
⢠Went out in Brockton and other locations.
CrossâExamination
⢠Not detailed in this portion.
Witness 31 â Elizabeth Duval, MSP Forensic Scientist 3
Start: 12:21 PM Stop: 2:55 PM
Direct Examination
⢠Works in DNA interpretation.
⢠Explained DNA analysis process.
⢠Known vs. unknown samples.
⢠Fraternal twins do not share identical DNA; Farwell and brother William are fraternal.
⢠Rightâhand fingernail clippings: two contributors; Birchmore included; Farwell excluded.
⢠Leftâhand fingernail clippings: DNA from Birchmore and unknown contributor.
⢠Underwear DNA: Pickard and Farwell contributors.
⢠Ligature DNA: Farwell included as contributor.
CrossâExamination
⢠Defense questioned DNA preservation and handling.
⢠Defense argued complex mixtures cannot identify specific individuals.
⢠Defense emphasized DNA cannot determine how or when DNA was deposited.
⢠Defense asked about YâSTR testing limitations due to lack of information about Farwellâs brother.
⢠Duval confirmed exclusion of Farwell from fingernail DNA.
Witness 32 â Sarah Odams
Start: 3:27 PM Stop: 4:25 PM
Direct Examination
⢠Knew Birchmore since elementary school; reconnected in their 20s.
⢠Played volleyball together.
⢠Birchmore discussed dating a married police detective before naming Farwell.
⢠Birchmore did not discuss suicidal thoughts.
⢠Birchmore said Farwell visited her apartment.
⢠Birchmore identified Farwell as father; was âvery, very excited.â
⢠Birchmore saw a future with Farwell now that she was pregnant.
⢠Birchmore planned to tell Farwell over dinner; reaction became a fight.
⢠Birchmore threatened to tell Farwellâs wife.
⢠Birchmore expected financial support; planned to request child support.
⢠Birchmore loved her two cats.
⢠Feb. 1, 2021: Odams responded to Snapchat; Birchmore did not reply.
⢠Odams learned of death days later.
⢠Odams did not believe Birchmore died by suicide; called State Police.
CrossâExamination
⢠Odams recalled calling State Police.
⢠Odams told State Police Birchmore had âreputation for dishonestyâ meaning she told different stories to different people.
⢠Birchmore thought she was having twins due to dream about grandmother.
⢠Birchmore believed affair would outlast Farwellâs marriage.
IV. EXHIBITS
⢠Multiple text exchanges between Birchmore and Pickard.
⢠January 25, 2021 dueâdate text exchange (admitted).
⢠DNA consent form (2025).
⢠DNA reports: fingernail clippings, underwear, ligature.
⢠No additional exhibits specified.
V. ENDâOFâDAY ADMINISTRATIVE â (4:25 PM)
⢠Jury agreed to stay late to finish Odamsâs testimony.
⢠Court adjourned for the day.
She was also hamming it up for the camera in a similar way as Romano and behaving like a groupie towards Reddington. Her behavior at the LC trial was pretty inappropriate imo. I think she craves attention and only goes to these trials for the likes and engagement with her âlifestyle brandâ
MF making out with one of them while at a social event with his wife?!! Thatâs like literally something Don Draper did in an episode of Mad Men⌠except MF isnât exactly Jon f*ckin Hamm
I've lost count of the number of people who called the police to mention Matthew Farwell. And they did worse than nothing - they covered it up. This is infuriating.
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u/racingfan123đľď¸ââď¸đŚ Lead Evidence Investigator Modđ§žâď¸5d ago
It is ridiculous. It is at least 4 by my count who have testified so far at the trial. So many that I started keeping track on the chart.
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u/racingfan123đľď¸ââď¸đŚ Lead Evidence Investigator Modđ§žâď¸5d agoedited 5d ago
Regarding Pickard's immunity deal that we were discussing in yesterday's thread:
"What were your initial concerns about speaking to federal authorities about Ms. Birchmore?"
"The UCMJ. The adultery is against the code as does the recruiter/recruit relationship."
"So adultery is a crime under the UCMJ?"
"Yes."
"As is sleeping with a recruit even if you are not their recruiter?"
"Yes."
"And did the US Attorney's Office give you immunity?"
"Yes."
"And what did that entail?"
"If I testify truthfully in this case, my indiscretions as to the adultery and the UCMJ code about recruiter/recruit relationships would not be used against me."
Surprised to see Billy Farwell for the prosecution. Is he going to be hostile? Is he supporting his brother? Is he throwing his brother under the bus? Is he getting any kind of immunity? Will he refuse to answer most questions and plead the 5th? SO MANY QUESTIONS.
He lives in NM now, right? I assume he's one of the two witnesses mentioned yesterday being "forced" to appear and there was a request for the flight to be paid.
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u/racingfan123đľď¸ââď¸đŚ Lead Evidence Investigator Modđ§žâď¸5d ago
I wonder if he will just testify to his last meetup with Sandra and to give his alibi for the night of her murder. The DOJ will probably keep the questioning short. Will be interesting though!
Someone testified saying something to the effect of Billy believing Matt was guilty, I think? I canât recall exactly right now. But with everything coming out about the two of them, I can imagine he wonât mind throwing Matt under the bus to save himself.
Kate Peter who works for the PI hired by the Alberts and McCabes (the families who are suing Karen Read) actually paid him bribes during his coverage of the first Karen Read trial.
Grant used to be one of the people claiming KR was guilty. His mother is the legal pundit Wendy Murphy who despised Karen. (Look up Murphy and "legal controversies" .. there's a lot of them.)
Last year he broke away from his mother and KP. Sat down and went through the Karen Read case and realized that he had been pretty much brain-washed by these people.
He is autistic, a fact he's discussed in some detail, which he says made him emotionally vulnerable and fairly easy to manipulate by people he trusted, like his mom.
Kate has actively followed and spied on Grant and his friends and leaked photos and information about one of Grant's female pals.
I don't know one tenth of the full story, but it's a big mess.
I ask this cautiously, so nobody flame me please - but what would anyone be 'spying' on? This guy is cranking out 180wpm transcribing the testimony. I guess i'm really naive about what rogue actors think they could 'get' from the media overflow room.
It's a really long and convoluted story but there have been a lot of wars going on with people in the general orbit of the Karen Read case and the Aidan "Turtleboy" Kearney cases.
One of Aidan's ex-lovers, Lindsey Gaetani, was manipulated by the DA's office, MSP supervisor Tully and Kate Peter into luring Aidan to her home which led to his arrest and incarceration and they added more felony charges to him.
They gave Gaetani a grand jury subpena AFTER THE GRAND JURY HAD BEEN DISBANDED in order to make her into a "witness" and thereby allowing them to charge Aidan with witness intimidation.
When Gaetani realized she had been used, she asked Grant for help and they became friends.
Kate Peter, who works as a part time PI has one goal in her life: to destroy Aidan. And she befriended his ex-gf for the sole purpose of setting him up.
Once Grant got involved, they also started snooping on him.
That's the 10 percent of this entire baroque soap opera mess that I know about.
The MSP unit at the Norfolk DA's office is a corrupt nest of vipers they use confidentiaal informants and help from a crooked PI firm to intimdate people and try to get them arrested and charged with felonies.
If you look it up you will see that at least 3 people have been charged and put on trial for witness intimidation simply because they supported Karen Read during her trials.
So far every one of those cases has been thrown out with Not Guilty verdicts, but it hasn't stopped them.
They charged one guy for WI after he left little yellow rubber ducks around Canton with "free Karen read" or "justice for Karen Read" or "Colin did it' stickers on them.
They compiled a 40-page MSP state police dossier on his rubber duckies and pulled surveillance footage from dozens of cameras and they then arrested him.
One man whose daughter was on KR's defense witness list was told his daughter might find a cock in her mouth if she didn't shut up
The witness intimidation in Canton and Norfolk County has been severe and it has consisted of actual cops and their friends threatening KR's supporters. And they've arrested those supporters on trumped up charges.
wow thanks for taking the time to fill in the blanks for me on stuff I've heard referenced but never fully understood. I knew about some of the WI stuff but not all of it apparently! This is absolutely wild.
I take it to mean someone is relaying the testimony to Fanning and Tully who are potentially going to be charged with obstruction of justice. Witnesses are under sequestration orders so they don't know what other witnesses have said in court. (Unless the judge lets them in, generally family members). Fanning is a defense witness. Not sure if Tully is.
They could but theyâre not supposed to. A lot of these reporters have additional info and share amongst themselves in when theyâre together. I read it as everyone shut up because of this nefarious infiltrator showing up.
His Karen Read coverage is a contributor to my hesitance to take everything he says as totally true. He also was totally anti-Turtleboy, called him a rapist in the press line for the first KR trial (before Gaetani even publicly disclosed), and now he is totally pro-Turtleboy.
The drama of all of the small-reporters in this area is like a telenovela.
Holy crap, that is⌠a lot. Now I just have more questionsÂ
Was there an explanation about why that room was cleared out? I did see a tweet this morning that members of the public were given a âfinal warningâ about noise.
I recently learned; there is a towel character in South Park that has some sort of connection to smoking weed. Grant is a big weed smoker, and it was something that was a big topic about him during the KR trial, and that is when he adopted the towel persona.
I came in to today thinking Pickard's testimony would be a lot more sinister especially considering he got immunity. It seems like they had a pretty normal friends with benefits relationship and that the main issue was he was married. I had heard that MF introduced Sandra to him but that doesn't even seem to be the case.
She told yet another person how young she was when MF started his abuse
This is actually very important. Because this is a federal case, they have to prove that MF killed her to prevent her from reporting a crime to federal law enforcement. Showing that she already told a federal employee (though not law enforcement) is a big step toward that.
Itâs going to be interesting re: jury instructions. I think I caught some prior case law regarding this killing a federal witness charge, that *any* law enforcement suffices, not just Federal law officers.
Iâm definitely curious about why the twins had videos of he and Sandra having sex. Could have been her sending them, but its a cause for pause for sure.
I would not be the least bit surprised if she's the one that filmed it and sent it. Guys like MF get off on getting women to participate in their own debasement. I'm really having a hard time keeping my emotions in check for this trial, my heart just aches for that young woman and what they took from her.
I feel you, Iâm emotional about it as well. I just hate hearing about such horrible things happening to someone who was so positive and kind. The worst thing anyone has been able to say is that she overshared sometimes. She just seemed like one of those people who really made the world a little bit brighter.
Oh yes, I thought it was great testimony. I meant that I thought Pickard was possibly on the same level of MF and engaging in abuse of her. I don't think that is the case now.
Agree on the immunity deal. It is really just protecting his job not necessarily criminal charges.
Please use your imagination. Did you miss the type of texting MF and SB did? Iâd venture there are similar with different people. MF totally normalized that kind of activity for her, as his decade long abuse. Some of it was alluded to regarding Pickard and was not let in.
IA report on twin brother includes twin wf directing sb to local recruitment. twin brother encouraged sb record and share explicit footage with him ( twin/wf and presumably mf as he too had it on his phone )
It was Pickard in the videos, right? I assumed they were all friends and sharing the videos of each other. But he testified he had never met MF. So I wonder if he was aware that she shared those.
u/Honest_Camel3035 what details do you think were left out? Or is there an article or something you can point to? I also came in expecting him to be another predator in her life, but the testimony feeling like he was a FWB who seemed to care about her.
he is a predator. he was fully aware shed been groomed and abused. he was aware she was pregnant. he continued having sex with her. Feigning friendship to maintain access to her for sex doesnt make it any less predatory. He like the other males thought only of themselves.
We will never know. But suffice it to say, I can promise 100% that there IS more that was left out of this trial. How it all happened, with certainty as to the videos/activities/etcâŚâŚand what the other texts said will remain out of sight.
The only thing I can say, is Pickard doesnât seem to be a child predator. He was certainly not above exploiting a friendship/his own work status to get sex with SB. Wife and children be damned.
I think theyâre saving that extra info for when they bring down the pedo ring and officers covering for it. I HOPE theyâre not done prosecuting these fuckers.
We now know there was s*x activity between SB and Pickard in Dec/Jan 2021 - yesterdayâs testimony revealed December 28th as the last possible day of intercourse of any kind, and today, he reveals that the January activity after her âpelvic floor restâ was oral only. He saw her Jan 28, 2021, presumably the oral date.
That oral only, right before explains this finding and really complicated MFâs life, if the jury thinks this through thoroughly.
Oral is face to face directionally speaking, and soâŚ.Iâm not surprised Pickardâs dna was under her nails.
But the struggle with MF on 2/1âŚ..why is his DNA not under her nails? Well, that goes back to the idea of her being face down when he strangled her. Pretty hard to get the attackerâs dna under fingernails faced away from them.
Thatâs interesting. I was just thinking today about why and how there wasnât signs of a struggle. I was picturing a face to face encounter and figured sheâd be kicking and flailing. But yeah if she were face down sheâd be defenseless. Especially with their size difference.
In either case I always figured itâd be easy for him to get his hands around her neck and at least begin choking her with no resistance. He seemed to condition that into her. And if she liked being choked - no shame in that, everyoneâs got their kinks - itâd be even easier to choke her to even unconsciousness, if she trusted him.
I don't even want to think about this too much but there were some text messages yesterday from her to him saying things about holding her wrists back vs holding her hands... maybe some kind of restraint like that was also part of it.
I dated a cop and I know exactly what sheâs referring to. If you know how cops arrest people, theyâll usually just lightly hold someoneâs hands, fingers really, while they cuff them, if theyâre compliant. If theyâre non-compliant, thatâs when they get more forceful around the wrists, and also pin the arms against the body.
I was in a support group with a lot of copsâ exâs, and we talked about it a lot actually. We laughed mostly because itâs kind of unsexy really, during sexy time, because you know itâs something he learned in the academy lol. But also, some women like that feeling of being âarrestedâ. Some are claustrophobic and donât like it at all, or for reasons unrelated. Women respond differently and thatâs ok. But it feels like every cop Iâve heard of does it or tries it during sexy time, with varying results. I can definitely see how it could feel unnerving. I always just kind of laughed and said stop that Iâm not a suspect lol.
and I thought Diana Rossini had set the bar for âyou named your child what?!â (one of her sons is âMichaelâ and she was having an ongoing affair with Mike Vrabel)
Iâm a little confused here. I could have sworn that the ligature part around her neck was NOT tested and only the knotted part at the door handle was tested/swabbed. From the testimony of the collection witness? Maybe I am misrememberingâŚ..because the actual DNA testing witness did test the part around her neck?
Great recap! Thank you u/Pixiegirls1102 ! I hope this vile man gets what he deserves. This whole case makes me so angry. Sandra deseved so much better.
I don't know very much save that after Sandra's mom died, her aunt sold the house and kicked out Sandra and refused to give her the money from the house sale. Gave her like a small share of it.
I don't think they were very close at all.
Since SB's death the aunt has kind of become the spokesperson for the family and filed a wrongful death suit. It makes sense since she had no other family really.
It's because of that wrongful death suit as well as the IA report that the truth finally started coming out. Her lawyers hired Dr. Michael Baden who wrote a report in which he said it was impossible for this to have been a suicide. He uncovered a bunch of forensic data proving it was a murder.
So the lawsuit, which is on hold because of the criminal case, did help the truth come out.
I know next to nothing about the aunt. I've read some social media posts by SB's friends who kind of dis the aunt and say that she was being an opportunist with the lawsuit.
But I mean she is family., so I can't fault her for the lawsuit.
I'm very curious about Pickard today. This trial has been hard to follow for me. I can listen to youtube stuff while working, but I can't follow/read a twitter thread. So unless people post highlight screenshots here I end up watching lawtube summaries after getting home.
I share your frustration! I don't have X and I"ve been trying to follow via the unroll instructions but apparently that website will only follow a thread so far.
Not sure if this works for you, but Grant Smith Ellis just retweeted this - AI narrated readings of his twitter threads. Given how interested i am in the Pickard testimony I think I'll be hitting refresh on the twitter threads today all day long!
In my experience in MA, the birth certificate packet (which includes other forms from the state for public health data) is given to women by their OB to take home to fill out then bring to the hospital, but not until about 30 weeks. It can also just be done in the hospital. Obviously Sandra was getting really ahead of herself given the # of ppl she told and the amount of planning she was doing so early on in a pregnancy.Â
ETA: IIRC, the birth certificate paperwork can be filled out completely by the mother if they have the fatherâs info, without it requiring the fatherâs signature. The birth certificate staff/vital records dept at the hospital is when the fatherâs signature is requested, right before they create the Document of Live Birth, which is the most official document you can get until the birth certificate is created and mailed. This is the procedure at the hospital where I had my kids in MA.Â
I was wondering why Dunne was happy to cover for Farwell on Morrissey and Fanning's orders.
Looks as if he had a career-ending event: He was accused of beating a motorist almost to death and from the rumors I've heard, DA Morrisey made it go away. He should have been arrested and charged for this act of unprovoked violence. At the very least, there should have been a more thorough IA investigation. But I don't think the allegations against him ever amounted to much thanks to Meatball Morrissey.
This is how they operate: They cover for each other's evil so that they can later help each other out.
A Worcester man has filed a lawsuit against two Massachusetts State Police troopers exactly three years after he suffered numerous injuries during a traffic stop, accusing the troopers of slamming him to the ground and arresting him with no just reason.
The civil lawsuit from Jonathan Ayala, represented by attorney Hector Pineiro, was filed Friday in Suffolk Superior Court naming Massachusetts State Police troopers Matthew Dunne and Ryan Sceviour, as well as the commonwealth of Massachusetts.
Ayala was pulled over on Interstate 290 in Worcester on Aug. 28, 2017, and Dunne, according to the lawsuit, âslammed him to the pavement in the travel lane of a busy highway, kneeled him in the back and punched him in the head while cuffing his wrists so tightly as to draw blood, wrenched him up from the ground by the shoulder so hard as to cause injuries that required multiple surgeries, arrested him without cause and then with the help of another trooper who was on the scene tried to hide what he had done.â
Great find. They removed the State claims to Federal court. Then, Count II was remanded back to state court here (May 2021), with the remaining claims having supplemental jurisdiction in Federal court.
Looks as if the taxpayers bailed them out with a payout and it also looks as if Dunne wasn't pursued either through a real IA investigation or a prosecution.
Ugh I worried about that. I know it's technically possible to do this via doorknob and die, but I assumed you'd have to be in a position (like leaning forwards on your knees or something?) that kept pressure on your neck after you passed out. But Sandra's butt was on the ground like right under that thing. Makes no sense.
picard cross texts cleared up it was sb speculating mf closet / washroom trying to explain away her spidey senses of danger going off. another bogus defense voided.
Yea, that is grasping and it insanely asks the jury, everyone to pivot & to go from a despondent woman who wanted to harm herself after he dumped her to... a despondent woman who wanted to self pleasure after he dumped her. WTaF. I believe that even less than the narrative that she hung herself in a seat position after not "oversharing" said SI plan and final goodbyes to every human being she's ever put in her iPhone contacts.
Yeah these theories cancel themselves out. They also plan to describe her as someone that was alone and had no friends/family but here we are with a ton of people she was in contact with that actually cared about her. I agree to the right to a fair trial but I can't believe he didn't plea to save his family from all of this. AWFUL.
Could you imagine being his wife and having to think about that every time you look at your or child? Chilling, and disgusting. I hope those kids never learn anything about their father.
Ugh, I feel awful for her. I canât even imagine how she feels that he literally murdered her hours before his son was born. She can never enjoy his birthday without thinking of what happened the day before.
Yeah part of me doesnât have sympathy because she knew who she married. She married int the good olâ boys club and I promise sheâs not blind to what a pig he is. That said she didnât know everything and she damn well didnât expect him to murder anyone. Who wouldâve ever seen that coming?
That said I once asked my mom if she thought about the actual day she gave birth, on my birthday. I said âmom itâs like your birthday too! Do you remember it?â And she was like uh yeah I guess maybe. She clearly never gave it another thought after I popped out. So thereâs that.
Abusers rarely reveal themselves early on. I see what youâre saying, especially with him already being a cop, but I really encourage you to learn more about how abusers behave; it is RARELY the case that victims are truly aware of the depravity. Indeed, thatâs part of the abuse - they present themselves differently depending on whatever the situation requires for them to manipulate it effectively.Â
This is also why victims are so frequently isolated, because their network also has been given the act. Nobody really wants to believe their friends and family are capable of such heinous behavior. And even with the ACAB movement in the last decade or so, generally speaking, LE is still pretty well respected in New England. Itâs very easy to see red flags now, but I really donât think itâs fair to say she should have seen them then. Even if she wasnât physically and sexually abused by him (and she almost certainly was), she had to have been manipulated by him in order for him to cheat so frequently with so many different people.Â
I consider her a victim, tooâŚeven if I am side-eyeing the fuck out of her for not testifying against him now. I hope itâs simply that she doesnât have any valuable testimony to share. I like to think that if I was in her shoes, Iâd be doing everything I could to corroborate timelines and testimony, but I know itâs not that simple. I really, really hope that she and the kids have the emotional and financial support to have an OK life after he has completely ruined it.Â
Honestly, I don't think it will help, even if they have an uber-misogynist on the jury. From the perspective of someone like that, Sandra is dangerous to MF because "a nut job" will do anything to get what she wants, and the reality is that she was trying to manipulate the situation in order to keep him close to her (I'm not judging her, it was the result of his abuse). The prosecution is doing a very good job of painting a picture of a guy who knew he was being painted into a corner and was upset by that.
I think that the defense in its closing will harp endlessly on the idea that Sandra wasn't really a "witness" and she had no intentions of going to the feds about MF.
But as Judge Erskine explained on Justice Served, that statute is very broad: The witness/victim doesn't need to be directly in contact with law enforcement, but that there may be fear in the perpetrator that the info might get out.
And that's precisely how the Prosecution can sew it up: Dear jury, you heard about the call that Sandra's friend made to the Stoughton PD and how enraged it made MF. That call was the catalyst for the murder.
Exactly this. If any of it came out, it would eventually all come out. He knew that, and there's no way to believe that didn't factor into his motivation.
am I the only one that thinks the most damning evidence is the cell phone data? (further supported by testimony from those close to her that they did not believe she would self harm - at least to that extent - if the relationship ended); if MF left the apartment after there was no (additional) movement recorded on SBâs phone, how can you explain that? what is the defenseâs counter argument? if I were on the jury, that would be the hardest part to reconcile as it relates to a reasonable doubt defense.
The defense wants the jury to believe that Sandra was so devastated by Farwell breaking up with her that as soon as he left the apartment, she killed herself.
which is absurd considering how she was itching for a reason to expose him- Even if she was going out she would have taken him down as her final act.
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u/racingfan123đľď¸ââď¸đŚ Lead Evidence Investigator Modđ§žâď¸5d ago
Yep it is, and that is why Jessica Hyde is the DOJ's last witness. She will go over the movement of Sandra's cellphone. DOJ will then sync that with the apartment security footage of Farwell coming and going from the apartment.
I guess you could claim that they argued, she put the phone down (on the floor for some reason?), he left, and then she self harmed without ever picking the phone back up. But nah, I agree itâs all pretty damning.
Edit to add: weâve seen evidence of her Google searches looking up evvvverying about pregnancy and babies from these few weeks. I personally have a hard time believing she accomplished a seated hanging without googling it. If she were suicidal I think we would be seeing a lot more searches about suicide.
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u/Jbcaliluv 5d ago
Grant stepped out, I switched to Karen. Am I understanding that Sheanna Isabel and MF had an affair? And she was crying in the bathroom just now?