A prominent forensic pathologist has determined that a pregnant Massachusetts woman who claimed she was groomed and sexually abused by three cops was murdered - and did not commit suicide as the state Medical Examiner reported.
Sandra Birchmore, 23, was found dead in her apartment on February 4, 2021, with Massachusetts State Police Trooper Matthew Dunne saying he found no signs of physical abuse or indications of a struggle.
The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner then ruled in May 2021 that Birchmore - a former participant in the Stoughton Police Department youth program - killed herself by hanging.
But former New York City Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Michael Baden has since determined that Birchmore was actually murdered, according to the Boston Globe.
'Ms. Birchmore did not die of suicidal hanging,' he wrote in a June 18 letter to a lawyer for Birchmore's estate.
'The cause of Ms. Birchmore's death is "strangulation" and the manner of death is "homicide."'
Baden - who previously led a US House Committee investigation into the assassinations of John F. Kennedy and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and who has conducted autopsies on George Floyd - cited the extent of Birchmore's injuries and the placement of a ligature as factors for his determination.
He noted that Birchmore had fractured her right hyoid bone - a small U-shaped bone in the neck - which fractures 'rarely, if at all, in suicidal hanging' but does occur in 'half of homicidal strangulation of women.'
The doctor also pointed to autopsy photos, which showed a piece of a ligature was found entangled in Birchmore's hair - which, Baden said, 'occurs when there is resistance during homicidal strangulation.'
He concluded that Birchmore would have lost consciousness 'within seconds' after the ligature was fastened around her neck, and died 'within a few minutes.'
Baden also wrote that the ligature was found tied to a doorknob, adding that he believes that was done to 'give the appearance of a suicidal hanging' even though she was happy about her pregnancy and didn't leave a suicide note.
The former medical examiner was asked to review the records of Birchwood's death by attorney Steven J. Marullo, who is representing her estate in a wrongful death suit.
Marullo said he examined the autopsy himself and 'saw certain things in the autopsy report that didn't gel with the conclusion that it was a suicide.
'I decided at that time we needed to hire our own expert pathologist,' he said.
The bombshell report comes as Birchmore's family is suing Matthew G. Farwell, 38, his twin brother William, and Robert C. Devine, 52, accusing them of grooming and sexually assaulting Birchmore from the time she entered the youth Explorer's program at the age of 13.
It claims they 'undertook to engage in inappropriate relationships with [Birchmore], who was a minor when the sexual relationships were initiated, abusing her trust and adoration of law enforcement, which through their inappropriate and undue influence, ultimately led her to allegedly take her own life,' according to the Globe.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-13565577/Twist-suicide-Sandra-Birchmore-groomed-sexually-abused-cops.html