Matthew Farwell’s federal trial over Sandra Birchmore’s death forces jurors to hold two very different records at the same time. Prosecutors allege the former Stoughton police detective strangled the 23-year-old in her Canton apartment on February 1, 2021, then staged the scene to resemble suicide. Farwell has pleaded not guilty and maintains that Birchmore took her own life. The prosecution’s motive theory carries a problem the defense will use: DNA testing excludes Farwell as the biological father of Birchmore’s unborn child. Prosecutors say Birchmore told Farwell the baby was his and point to messages they say show he believed that claim. Their argument is that his state of mind matters more than the later DNA result. The defense has a second opening. Massachusetts’ medical examiner changed Birchmore’s death certificate in 2026 from “asphyxia by hanging” and “suicide” to “asphyxia” and “undetermined.” Defense expert Dr. Thomas Andrew, a former New Hampshire chief medical examiner, says suicidal hanging cannot be ruled out. Prosecutors will counter with experts who say the injuries are more consistent with strangulation. Judge Denise Casper has ruled that jurors may hear selected texts, social-media messages and journal entries from Birchmore. She has also allowed the defense to introduce evidence about Birchmore’s mental-health history and prior suicidal thoughts. Defense attorney and former prosecutor Eric Faddis joins Tony Brueski to examine the collision: a motive built on a belief that DNA later contradicted, and a cause-of-death record that no longer says suicide but still does not say homicide. Listen Anywhere You Get Podcasts: https://pod.link/1655749292 Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/@hiddenkillerspod?sub_confirmation=1 Join Our SubStack For AD-FREE ADVANCE EPISODES & EXTRAS!: https://hiddenkillers.substack.com/ Watch Robin Dreeke's MasterClass: http://masterclass.com/robindreeke Instagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspod X Twitter https://x.com/tonybpod This publication contains commentary and opinion based on publicly available information. All individuals are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Nothing published here should be taken as a statement of fact, health or legal advice. #SandraBirchmore #MatthewFarwell #HiddenKillers #StoughtonPolice #FederalTrial #DNAEvidence #MedicalExaminer #CantonMA #EricFaddis #TrueCrime