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Ex-Boyfriend, ME Testify in Detective's Murder Trial
29 Oct
Summary
- Ex-boyfriend testified about Birchmore's struggles and threats.
- Medical examiner's office testimony debated death's cause.
- Defense questions Birchmore's mental health and past suicide claims.
Testimony from Sandra Birchmore's former boyfriend, William Kilroy, and the state's chief medical examiner, Dr. Mindy Hull, marked a shift in the trial of former detective Matthew Farwell. Kilroy detailed Birchmore's struggles with depression following family deaths and mentioned her past suicide threats, though he also affirmed her strength.
Dr. Hull's testimony addressed the medical examiner's office's process for classifying deaths as 'undetermined' when other causes are ruled out. An assistant medical examiner's report initially labeled Birchmore's death as a 'suicide by hanging,' noting an unkempt apartment but no suicide notes or trauma beyond ligature marks.
The defense highlighted Kilroy's 2018 affidavit, where he stated Birchmore threatened suicide and blamed him. Prosecutors claim Farwell killed Birchmore, then staged her death as a suicide, and caused the death of her fetus. Farwell denies the charges.
Birchmore's manner of death was initially ruled a suicide by the forensic pathologist who performed the autopsy. However, this ruling was later withdrawn, and the cause is now considered undetermined. Expert testimony has emerged suggesting strangulation as a possibility, contradicting the suicide finding.
