Crime & JusticeDeveloping
Former Massachusetts officer's murder trial opens in 2021 death of Sandra Birchmore
By Mantle News
Coverage spectrum
Covered by 3 outlets, mostly right-leaning (67%).
4 articles in total. The spectrum counts each outlet once and leaves opinion out. How we measure bias
Opening statements were set to begin Friday in the murder trial of Matthew Farwell, a former Stoughton, Massachusetts, police officer charged in the death of Sandra Birchmore, who was pregnant and 23 years old. Her death in 2021 was initially ruled a suicide. Prosecutors say Farwell killed Birchmore and staged the scene to look like a suicide. Prosecutors also allege that Farwell groomed Birchmore beginning when she was 15, and that he strangled her after she told him she was pregnant with his child. The FBI arrested Farwell in August 2024. Testimony was expected to follow the opening statements.
Headline and summary written by Mantle’s AI from the coverage below, under published rules. How this works
What happened
Key points
Each point shows who reports it, from Far Left to Far Right.
Opening statements were set to begin Friday in the trial of former Stoughton police officer Matthew Farwell.
Reported byLeft1Right1Far Right1See the outletsHide the outlets
- Left
- CBS News
- Right
- New York Post
- Far Right
- Fox News
Sandra Birchmore, 23, was pregnant when she died in 2021, and her death was initially ruled a suicide.
Reported byLeft1Right1Far Right1See the outletsHide the outlets
- Left
- CBS News
- Right
- New York Post
- Far Right
- Fox News
Prosecutors say Farwell killed Birchmore and staged the scene to look like a suicide.
Reported byLeft1Right1Far Right1See the outletsHide the outlets
- Left
- CBS News
- Right
- New York Post
- Far Right
- Fox News
Prosecutors allege Farwell groomed Birchmore beginning when she was 15.
One side only: the rightReported byRight1Far Right1See the outletsHide the outlets
- Right
- New York Post
- Far Right
- Fox News
Prosecutors allege Farwell strangled Birchmore after she told him she was pregnant.
One side only: the rightReported byRight1Far Right1See the outletsHide the outlets
- Right
- New York Post
- Far Right
- Fox News
The FBI arrested Farwell, 40, in August 2024.
One outletFox News· Far Right
What is contested
Where accounts differ
Points the coverage does not agree on, and who says what.
The age at which Farwell began grooming Birchmore.
Fox News and the New York Post text attribute to prosecutors an allegation that grooming began at 15, while the New York Post headline says she was groomed starting at 12.
Whether Farwell killed Birchmore and staged her death as a suicide.
Prosecutors allege he strangled her and staged the scene, and the trial is testing that charge. The supplied coverage gives no response from Farwell or his lawyers.
How each side tells it
Compare views
the left
1 outlet
The CBS headline is a plain report that the trial has begun, naming the charge and the staged-suicide claim without adjectives or judgement.
Trial begins for former cop accused of killing pregnant woman and staging it as suicide
CBS NewsLeftAll left-leaning headlines the center
No coverage yet
No center outlet that Mantle follows has covered this story yet. That absence is part of the picture.
the right
2 outlets
Fox News uses a neutral headline on the murder trial and the staged suicide, while the New York Post headline puts the grooming allegation and the words ‘then killed’ up front and its description calls Farwell disgraced.
Cop ‘lulled’ Sandra Birchmore into false sense of safety before allegedly killing her, prosecutor claims as final texts revealed
New York PostRightAll right-leaning headlines
The words they chose
Language to notice
Words that carry a judgement beyond the facts. Tap a highlighted word anywhere on the page to see why.
Left0
No loaded words in its own voice.
Center
Has not covered this story.
Right2
Disgracedlaw enforcement fanatic
In the outlets’ own words
Loaded modifier
DisgracedMore neutral: Former officer
The label pre-judges Farwell before the trial has reached a verdict.
Disgraced ex-cop Matthew Farwell is finally slated to face trial over five years after he…
Used byNew York Post (Right)
Loaded modifier
law enforcement fanaticMore neutral: interested in law enforcement
The label describes a 12-year-old in extreme terms that go beyond her enrollment in a police youth program.
BOSTON — In 2010, Sandra Birchmore was a 12-year-old law enforcement fanatic enrolled in a police youth program in Stoughton, Massachusetts.
Used byNew York Post (Right)
See for yourself
Side by side
What each side leads with and what it leaves out. Open a side to read its headlines.
From the left
1 outletLeads with
- the start of the trial
- the charge of killing a pregnant woman
- the initial suicide ruling
Leaves out
- the grooming allegations
- the alleged strangulation
- the FBI arrest in August 2024
Reported by other sides, not found in this side’s coverage.
See the headline from the leftHide the headlines
- CBS NewsLeft
Trial begins for former cop accused of killing pregnant woman and staging it as suicide
Opening statements are set to begin Friday in the trial of former Massachusetts police officer Matthew Farwell, who is charged with killing Sandra Birchmore, a pregnant woman whose death was initially ruled a suicide in 2021. Tom Hanson has more.
From the center
0 outletsNo center outlet that Mantle follows has covered this story yet. That absence is part of the picture.
From the right
2 outletsLeads with
- the grooming of Birchmore from a young age
- the staged suicide
- the five years before trial
- the former officer she admired
See the 2 headlines from the rightHide the headlines
- New York PostRight
Cop ‘lulled’ Sandra Birchmore into false sense of safety before allegedly killing her, prosecutor claims as final texts revealed
A Massachusetts cop allegedly "lulled" Sandra Birchmore into a false sense of safety before killing her to cover up their affair, a prosecutor claimed as a jury was shown her final text messages.
- Fox NewsFar Right
Former Massachusetts police officer faces murder trial over pregnant woman's staged suicide
Prosecutors say former Stoughton officer Matthew Farwell groomed Sandra Birchmore starting at age 15 and later strangled her over her pregnancy.
Articles you open from here build My Mix, a private picture of how your reading spreads across the spectrum, kept on this device. What is My Mix?
The left is Far Left and Left together. The right is Right and Far Right together. Every outlet keeps its own five-point rating.
Who reported it when
How the coverage built up
Left
4 hr later
Its first report, Oct 9, 10:03 AM EDT
Center
No report yet
From the outlets Mantle follows
Right
First to report
Fox News, Oct 9, 6:00 AM EDT
See the order the outlets reported inHide the order
- Fox NewsFar RightOct 9, 6:00 AM EDT
- New York PostRightOct 9, 6:30 AM EDT
- CBS NewsLeftOct 9, 10:03 AM EDT
Times are the ones the outlets published in their own feeds, in Eastern time. Opinion is left out.
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