STOUGHTON, MA — The eighth day of testimony has finished in the federal trial of former Stoughton police detective Matthew Farwell.
On Thursday, five people took the stand, including Army recruiter Jason Pickard, two women who say they had an affair with Farwell, Samantha Rinaldi and Sheanna Isabel, Mass. State Police Crime Lab worker Betsey Duval and Birchmore's friend Sarah Odams, according to multiple reports.
Farwell, 40, is charged with killing Birchmore and causing the death of her unborn child. Prosecutors allege he strangled the pregnant 23-year-old in her Canton apartment in 2021 to prevent her from disclosing their relationship, which they say began when she was 15. Farwell has pleaded not guilty and maintains Birchmore died by suicide.
Prosecutors say Farwell killed the 23-year-old to prevent her from disclosing that he had groomed and sexually abused her beginning when she was 15, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
The first set of witnesses took the stand Tuesday after a jury of 16 was finalized last week.
Farwell faces federal charges of killing a witness or victim and causing the death of a child in utero, according to a superseding indictment. Prosecutors claim Farwell strangled Birchmore in her apartment on Feb. 1, 2021, then staged the scene to appear as though she died by suicide.
Farwell's defense acknowledges that he had an affair with Birchmore but maintains that he did not kill her.
Pickard, who was identified through DNA testing as the father of Birchmore's unborn child, testified about his relationship with Birchmore. FBI Special Agent Heidi Kelsch previously testified that Pickard and Birchmore met around December 2019, according to Boston.com and NBC10 Boston.
Rinaldi and Isabel testified about affairs they said they had with Farwell. The judge previously ruled that prosecutors could introduce testimony about Farwell's other alleged affairs, according to Boston 25 News.
Jurors also heard testimony from Duval, who works for the Massachusetts State Police Crime Laboratory, and Odams, a friend of Birchmore. Odams was the friend who called Stoughton police about Birchmore's relationship with Farwell in January 2021, according to NBC10 Boston.
The trial is expected to last about five weeks. Farwell would face life in federal prison if convicted.
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