A Stoughton police detective who called herself a close friend of Matthew Farwell testified Wednesday that in late January 2021, days before Sandra Birchmore died, Farwell told her he was having problems with a woman who was not his wife. She said he told her he believed the problem was “going to take care of itself.” A second detective said Farwell told him he had to “put crazy back in the bag.” Prosecutors also called a forensic psychologist who explained the stages of child grooming in general terms, a State Police forensic scientist who handled biological evidence from Birchmore’s body and the strap found around her neck, and several of Birchmore’s friends, who said she told them she was pregnant and that Farwell was the father.
Day 7 of testimony in United States v. Farwell, on October 21, 2026, moved quickly. Boston 25 News reported that jurors heard from at least six witnesses. Farwell, a former Stoughton detective, is charged with killing Birchmore and her unborn child in February 2021 to keep her from exposing their sexual relationship, which prosecutors say began when she was 15. He has pleaded not guilty. His defense is that Birchmore took her own life after he ended the relationship.
The detective: “going to take care of itself”
Stoughton Police Detective Sandra Barrett testified that she and Farwell had once shared an office workspace and had been friends since he joined the department. They socialized outside work with their families, she said, according to NBC10 Boston and Boston.com.
- A change in early 2021. Barrett said Farwell seemed agitated at the end of 2020 and start of 2021 and kept stepping outside to take phone calls, the Boston Globe and Boston.com reported.
- The conversation. In late January 2021, while they were out together, she asked him if everything was OK. According to the Globe, she testified that Farwell said “he was having problems with a female party in his life,” someone other than his wife, but did not say who. Boston.com and Boston 25 News reported that she said the woman was threatening to tell his wife about the relationship.
- The quote. “He believed the problem was going to take care of itself,” Barrett testified, as reported by Boston.com, with the same words reported by the Globe and Boston 25.
- What she did not know. Barrett said she did not know Birchmore was in a sexual relationship with Farwell, NBC10 reported. She described Birchmore as immature and socially awkward. “Even in her older years, I felt like I was talking to a juvenile,” she said.
- After the death. Barrett said she texted Farwell when she learned Birchmore had died, and did not believe she was the first to tell him. Asked whether she was surprised to learn that Birchmore had reportedly hanged herself, she said, “I didn’t have much feeling about it,” according to NBC10.
After the lunch break, Barrett testified that Farwell earned comp time for his work with the department’s Explorers program, NBC10 reported. Birchmore joined that youth program as a minor.
The testimony comes a day after a former dispatcher said Farwell reacted angrily to a January 20, 2021 call that referred to his relationship with Birchmore. Our day 6 post covers that testimony.
A second detective: “put crazy back in the bag”
Late in the day, Stoughton Police Detective Daniel Barber, another close friend of Farwell’s, gave a similar account. Barber said Farwell had been his field training officer in 2013 and that he served as secretary and then vice president of the patrol officers’ union while Farwell was its president, NBC10 reported. The Globe identified Barber as the union’s president now.
- The drive to Taunton. Barber said Farwell was usually calm under pressure, never “too high or too low,” according to the Globe. At the end of 2020 and start of 2021, he was “texting incessantly” and stepping out to take calls. On a work drive to Taunton, Barber asked what was going on. “He said, ‘I gotta put crazy back in the bag,'” Barber recalled, as reported by the Globe. Barber said that when he asked what that meant, Farwell repeated the phrase and said, “Everything will be alright.” NBC10 reported the same remark as “I have to put crazy back in the bag.”
- “Off the air.” On November 28, 2020, while they were working together, Farwell texted around 10:18 p.m. that he would be “off the air” and to call if anything came up, NBC10 reported. Barber said Farwell did not tell him he was with Birchmore.
- After the death. According to NBC10, Barber testified that on the afternoon of February 2, 2021, Farwell texted to check in and said he was bored, which Barber said was not like him. On February 7, Barber called Farwell to tell him about a rumor that he had a sexual relationship with Birchmore. Barber said Farwell sounded frantic and asked who else knew, then texted later that night to ask what else Barber knew.
- The mask. Barber said he never saw Farwell wear a mask and that Farwell was strongly opposed to wearing one, NBC10 reported. Earlier witnesses said the same. The surveillance video from Birchmore’s building shows Farwell masked.
The grooming expert
Lisa Rocchio, a clinical and forensic psychologist, testified as an expert on the sexual abuse of children. She said she had worked with “hundreds upon hundreds” of victims. Boston.com reported that she testified she had not interviewed any witnesses in the case, reviewed its documents or followed media coverage of it. The Globe reported that she was “testifying generally and not about the specifics of the case.”
She described grooming as a “deceptive and manipulative process used by perpetrators” and walked the jury through five stages, according to the Globe and Boston.com:
- Selection and targeting of a vulnerable young person, such as one with a difficult home life or a parent who is not around. “So the child doesn’t have someone looking out for them,” she said, as the Globe reported.
- Isolation and access, often by someone in a position of power, in ways unlikely to arouse suspicion.
- Building trust, with the child and with the wider community. Perpetrators often try to seem like “pillars of community,” she said, according to Boston.com.
- Desensitization to touch and to sexual topics.
- Maintenance, keeping the abuse going and secret.
She said “disclosure is a process,” and that victims “may have a misguided sense of loyalty” to the perpetrator. WCVB reported she testified that perpetrators may present themselves as a boyfriend or confidant while the power imbalance between an adult and a child is overlooked.
The cross-examination. Rocchio defined a child, for this purpose, as anyone under 18, as the research literature does. On cross-examination, defense attorney Joanne Daley reminded the jury that the age of consent in Massachusetts is 16, the Globe reported.
MassLive reported that when prosecutors tried to draw connections, “even vague ones,” between the concepts Rocchio was explaining and Farwell, Chief U.S. District Judge Denise Casper sustained defense objections. Daley stressed on cross-examination that Rocchio had no knowledge of the facts, MassLive reported, which left jurors to decide for themselves what to take from the testimony. That is the usual limit on this kind of expert: she describes patterns, and the jury decides whether the evidence fits them.
What Massachusetts law says about age
Daley’s point and the prosecution’s allegations both turn on age 16. Under G.L. c. 265, § 23, anyone who “has sexual intercourse or unnatural sexual intercourse, and abuses a child under 16 years of age” faces up to life in prison. Section 23A, the aggravated version, applies when the child is between 12 and 16 and “there exists more than a 10 year age difference between the defendant and the victim,” and in its current form carries a minimum of 10 years.
Prosecutors allege that Farwell and Birchmore first had sex on April 10, 2013, when she was 15 and he was 27, which they call aggravated statutory rape, the Globe reported. Farwell is not on trial for a state rape charge. The federal charge requires the government to prove he killed Birchmore to prevent her from telling federal authorities about federal offenses. According to the Globe, prosecutors say those were sexual exploitation, wire fraud tied to sexual contact while he was on duty, and deprivation of rights under color of law.
The State Police forensic scientist
The day began with Stephanie Waite, a forensic scientist with the Massachusetts State Police. According to Boston.com, WCVB and the Globe:
- She received the ligature found around Birchmore’s neck, her underwear, fingernail scrapings, blood samples and swabs from parts of her body. The swabs were collected on February 26, 2021, almost a month after Birchmore died, Boston.com reported.
- She found sperm cells on the underwear, but not on swabs taken from Birchmore’s body, WCVB reported. Her samples were sent to other specialists for DNA testing.
- She said trace evidence, possibly hair, was collected from the strap, and that she was not aware of any further testing on it, according to WCVB.
Prosecutors have said Farwell’s DNA was linked to samples from the ligature and Birchmore’s clothing, WCVB has reported.
What Birchmore told her friends
Several of Birchmore’s friends testified about what she told them about Farwell and the pregnancy. We are not naming them because they are private individuals.
- A friend from the Explorers program. A woman who was in the Stoughton Police Explorers program with Birchmore from about 2010 said Birchmore talked about dating someone in high school but kept it vague and did not name Farwell, according to the Globe and Boston.com. She said Birchmore told her in December 2020 that she was pregnant and that Farwell was the father. The Globe reported that she recalled Birchmore asking, “Do you remember the twins?” Farwell has a twin brother who was also a Stoughton officer. She said Birchmore was “very happy” and “ready to be a mother,” and told her Farwell was upset because he did not want his name on a birth certificate, Boston.com reported.
- Her hairstylist. Birchmore’s hairstylist since early 2020 testified that Birchmore told her the relationship with “Matt” began when Birchmore was 13, Boston.com reported. WCVB reported it as Birchmore saying she met Farwell at 13. The Globe reported the stylist testified that Birchmore told her she lost her virginity to Farwell. She said Birchmore was trying to get pregnant in 2020, later told her she was pregnant, and said Farwell was not happy about it. After Birchmore’s death, she called the Norfolk District Attorney’s office and mentioned a relationship with “someone named Matt,” the Globe reported. On cross-examination, Daley asked whether she had ever told state or federal investigators that Birchmore was 13 when the relationship began. She said she did not recall, according to Boston.com.
- A schoolmate and the snowstorm. A former schoolmate testified that Birchmore asked for her boyfriend’s help digging out her car on December 31, 2020, saying she was pregnant and could not shovel herself, NBC10 reported. Birchmore reached out again on January 31, 2021 about a storm expected the next day, a Monday. On February 1, the day prosecutors say Farwell killed her, Birchmore sent information about where to find her car, including a photo. NBC10 reported that the conversation was left unfinished.
- A classmate from Massasoit. A friend who met Birchmore in a science class at Massasoit Community College in January 2020 testified that Birchmore told her she and Farwell had been together about 10 years and that he was married, according to NBC10 and the Globe. The Globe reported she said that by fall 2020, Birchmore wanted to have Farwell’s baby and was pressuring him with threats to expose the relationship to his wife. NBC10 reported that she said Birchmore told her in December that doctors thought she was pregnant and the pregnancy was high risk, and that Farwell was upset when he learned of it. She said Birchmore told her that on January 23, 2021, Farwell visited, looked around her room and closet, and asked for a key to her apartment, telling her to keep it secret, NBC10 reported. The Globe reported that Birchmore texted her baby clothes pictures on January 31 and never answered Chandler’s next text, on February 2. On cross-examination, she acknowledged Birchmore had told her about spotting, bleeding and cramping during the pregnancy and about a rejection from a nursing program, according to both outlets. The two outlets differed on one answer: NBC10 reported that she said no when asked whether she thought Farwell was looking for another man in the closet, while the Globe reported she acknowledged she had theorized he might have been. The Globe also reported she agreed she knew Birchmore had been “involved” with Farwell’s twin brother.
A paternity test later showed that Farwell was not the father, a fact jurors heard earlier in the trial. Birchmore told many people, including Farwell, that she believed he was, the Globe reported.
How it fits the two sides’ cases
The prosecution’s witnesses described a woman who was excited about becoming a mother and making plans into the day she died, and a defendant who was under pressure from a threat of exposure. The defense has used cross-examination to point to Birchmore’s mental health history and to test the reliability of what friends say she told them. Boston 25 News reported that the two sides have given jurors “sharply different accounts” of Birchmore’s state of mind. The defense maintains she was struggling financially and died by suicide after Farwell went to her apartment to end the relationship.
Most of the friends’ testimony is about what Birchmore said, not what they saw. Under the federal hearsay rules, a statement of the speaker’s “then-existing state of mind (such as motive, intent, or plan)” can be admitted, but not “a statement of memory or belief to prove the fact remembered or believed.” Fed. R. Evid. 803(3). Which purpose a given statement serves can matter when the jury is instructed on how to use it.
What comes next
Testimony continues as the prosecution calls more witnesses. Cameras are not allowed in the federal courtroom, so coverage comes from reporters in the room. Our trial tracker has the full timeline.
Frequently asked questions
What did Sandra Barrett testify in the Farwell trial?
Stoughton Police Detective Sandra Barrett, a friend of Farwell’s, testified that in late January 2021 he told her he was having problems with a woman other than his wife, who was threatening to tell his wife, and that he believed the problem was “going to take care of itself.” She said she did not know about his sexual relationship with Birchmore.
What did Farwell mean by “put crazy back in the bag”?
Stoughton Detective Daniel Barber testified that Farwell said it on a work drive in early 2021 when Barber asked why he was texting constantly and stressed. Barber said Farwell repeated the phrase without explaining it and said everything would be all right. What it meant is a question for the jury.
Why did a grooming expert testify in the Farwell trial?
Prosecutors called forensic psychologist Lisa Rocchio to explain the general stages of grooming: targeting, isolation and access, building trust, desensitization and maintenance. She testified that she had not reviewed the case. It is up to the jury to decide whether the evidence fits the patterns she described.
What is the age of consent in Massachusetts?
Sixteen. Under G.L. c. 265, § 23, sexual intercourse with a child under 16 is a felony punishable by up to life in prison. Section 23A adds a 10-year minimum when the child is between 12 and 16 and the defendant is more than 10 years older.
What is Matthew Farwell’s defense?
The defense argues that Birchmore took her own life after Farwell went to her apartment on February 1, 2021 to end their relationship. He has pleaded not guilty and is presumed innocent.
Sources: The Boston Globe, Boston.com live coverage, NBC10 Boston live coverage, WCVB, Boston 25 News and MassLive, October 21, 2026. G.L. c. 265, §§ 23 and 23A read at malegislature.gov; Fed. R. Evid. 803(3) read in full. Quotations are as reported by those outlets. We have not named private witnesses who are not public employees. Matthew Farwell has pleaded not guilty and is presumed innocent. General information, not legal advice.