Corruption Watchlist – July 2024

Alleged Assault, Grooming and Death of Sandra Birchmore, Stoughton, MA

Accusations of grooming and sexual assault against three police officers from Stoughton, Massachusetts resurface following examination by forensic pathologist.  

Sandra Birchmore, 23, was discovered deceased in her Canton apartment from what officials originally ruled as death by suicide on Feb. 4, 2021. 

However, Birchmore’s family launched their own investigation to find more answers about her death and unraveled a web of alleged grooming and assault within the Stoughton Police Department.  

Birchmore was enrolled in a youth program with the Stoughton Police when she was just 13-years-old, The Boston Globe reports. 

The three officers allegedly involved were publicly named in Sept. 2022 as Matthew Farwell, William Farwell and Robert Devine.  Devine was reportedly the former leader of the explorers program that Birchmore was involved in. All three resigned prior to being interviewed by authorities, NBC10 Boston reports. 

Surveillance footage from Feb. 1, three days before Birchmore’s death, showed Matthew Farwell arriving and later leaving Birchmore’s apartment in Canton. Matthew Farwell was the last person to see Birchmore alive, The Boston Globe reported citing the Stoughton Police internal affairs report. 

Her family is now suing the Town of Stoughton, Stoughton Police Department, and the three officers allegedly involved for wrongful death. 

According to reports, the medical examiner discovered that Birchmore was three months pregnant at the time of her death. CourtTV reports that Birchmore allegedly told her friend that Farwell was the father. 

Family and friends of Birchmore told multiple officials that Birchmore was excited to be a mother. 

The Boston Globe reported that Devine and William Farwell allegedly had sexual relations with Birchmore in their patrol cars. 

Prolific forensic pathologist Michael Baden, who was hired by the family, said he believes there is evidence to show Birchmore was murdered. Baden testified in the infamous OJ Simpson case, the George Floyd case and the death of Jeffrey Epstein. 

Baden said that Birchmore suffered a fracture to her hyoid bone, located in the neck. Baden stated that this injury is not consistent with self-inflicted hanging but is common in homicidal strangulation, The Boston Globe reports. 

Stoughton Police Chief Donna M. McNamara released a statement about the investigation on June 24. 

“In September of 2022, I released an executive summary which revealed for the first time, the horrific injustices including grooming and sexual abuse inflicted upon Sandra Birchmore at the hands of one rogue and corrupt former police officer and additional inappropriate sexual relationships by other former police officers,” the statement read.

Stoughton is located in Norfolk County, the same county where Karen Read was tried for the death of Officer John O’Keefe. Birchmore also lived in Canton, the same town where O’Keefe’s body was discovered.

Public Records Laws, NJ  

In early June, New Jersey Governor, Phil Murphy signed a bill that alters the state’s previous Open Public Records Act (OPRA) which was enacted in 2002.

The “Reform Bill,” or S2930, changes the way the media and public request documents and may make it difficult to obtain certain information. 

“I want to acknowledge that I know that this decision will disappoint many members of the advocacy community, including a number of social justice, labor, and environmental organizations, among others,” Governor Murphy wrote in a statement,  “I have heard the many objections to the bill directly, and I know that they are made in good faith and with good intentions.”

According to the New Jersey Legislature, the revised bill will alter the process to obtain access to government records. The bill states that a public agency has the “responsibility and obligation” to “safeguard” particular public access if the agency believes the information may result in harassment or “unwanted solicitation, identity theft, or opportunities for other criminal acts.”

Critics of the bill believe this controversial revision to OPRA will lead to less transparency within state politics. 

In a statement made by the American Civil Liberties Union New Jersey Policy Director Sarah Fajardo, she said politicians in NJ should prioritize transparency and not “undermining it in backroom deals.” 

The bill was first introduced to the NJ senate on March 3, 2024 and approved on June 5, 2024. According to the bill, it will go into effect on July 5, 2024, or 30 days after it was passed.

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