Ex-deputy chief says Sandra Birchmore lied about everything

(NewsNation) — Former Massachusetts Deputy Police Chief Robert C. Devine said in a June hearing that murder victim Sandra Birchmore consistently lied.

NewsNation obtained footage of a disciplinary hearing involving Devine, where the nature of his relationship with Birchmore was in question.

Birchmore’s family accused three Stoughton police officers of grooming and abusing her for years, which reportedly began when she was a young teen participating in the Stoughton Police Explorers Academy, which Devine led.

Devine claimed he never had sexual relations with Devine, nor communicated with her under the alias "Marty Riggs." The former police chief suggested it was Birchmore who was propositioning officers, not the other way around.

The Peace Officers Standards and Training Commission, which conducted the hearing, said it has evidence proving otherwise.

"She lied about everything," Devine said. "... She pretty much lied about everything there was to lie about," he added.

Former Stoughton Police Detective Matthew G. Farwell allegedly killed Birchmore in February 2021 by strangulation and “staged” her Canton apartment “to make it appear as if Birchmore had committed suicide,” court records stated.

Birchmore’s body was found in her apartment after she didn’t show up for work for several days. Investigators found that Farwell was the last person to see Birchmore alive.

At the time of Birchmore’s death, she was pregnant and told friends it was Farwell’s child. However, a DNA test found Farwell was not the father of her unborn child. Farwell was charged with killing a witness or a victim in August 2024. His murder trial date has yet to be scheduled.

NewsNation's Robert Taub contributed to this report.