Federal prosecutors will not seek the death penalty for Matthew Farwell, accused of killing 23-year-old Sandra Birchmore while she was pregnant. See Boston.com news article.
Prosecutors allege Farwell killed Birchmore after she revealed that he was the father of her child and then staged the scene to make it look like she had died by suicide.
Farwell has pleaded not guilty.
After a comprehensive presentation by the defense team to the Attorney General’s Capital Case Section, the government filed a notice that it will not seek the death penalty in this case.
The decision to not seek the death penalty for Farwell is a deviation for the administration as the president and attorney general has repeatedly voiced support for more use of capital punishment.
Farwell is set to face trial in a Boston federal court in October 2026.
Farwell’s lawyers have continued litigating the case and pushing for a change of venue in his trial due to the potential for "voluminous pretrial publicity" that would taint the jury pool.
Farwell is represented by a team, including the Federal Defender Office for the Districts of Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island.
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