Another officer linked to Sandra Birchmore could be disbarred

Joshua Heal, a former Abington school employee, met Birchmore when she was an adult and allegedly had a sexual relationship with her.

Two women hold a sign that reads, “Justice for Sandra Birchmore and her baby!” in front of the court building John Joseph Moakley in the United States. Pat Greenhouse/The Boston Globe Staff)

Former Abington police officer with whom he allegedly had a sexual relationship Sandra Birchmore The city’s police chief confirmed that the certificate could be revoked by the state watchdog.

Abington Police Chief John Bonney, who joined the department from the Stoughton Police Department, said he will be recommending that the Peace Officer Standards and Training Commission (POST) revoke Joshua Heal’s certification.

Heal, a former school employee, was named in an internal investigation conducted at Stoughton after Birchmore’s death. Boston News 25 first reported.

Birchmore was 23 years old and pregnant when she was found dead in her Canton apartment in 2021. Investigators initially ruled her death a suicide. Instead, according to a federal indictment, former Stoughton police officer Matthew Farwell, who began having sex with her when she was 15, allegedly killed her and staged her death to look like a suicide.

Three former Stoughton officers were named, including Farwell as defendants in a wrongful death lawsuit filed by Birchmore’s estate, alleging that each officer groomed Birchmore, initially as part of the department’s Young Explorers program, which she joined at age 13. Heal was named as a defendant in that lawsuit in 2023, but those charges were dismissed a year later.

Heal’s attorney, Pete Farrell, said Heal is a material witness and is cooperating with the ongoing federal investigation. He said last week that Heal had not been notified by POST that it might lose its certificate.

“Allegations are allegations and to suggest that Mr. Heal could be decertified is speculative at best,” Farrell told Boston.com in a statement. “The Tribunal made specific factual findings. These findings speak for themselves and form part of the Court’s case file. These facts show that Mr. Heal and Mrs. Birchmore were friends and met when they were both adults.

Court records: Heal met Birchmore when they were adults

Heal worked as animal control specialist Court documents show he held Stoughton’s township office from 2016 to 2020, when he resigned to enroll in the police academy. He met Birchmore around 2016 when she came to adopt a cat from the shelter.

“Defendant Heal admitted that he engaged in oral sex with Ms. Birchmore on at least one occasion for known reasons,” according to court documents. “In his interview with investigators, Heal admitted that he and Ms. Birchmore were close friends.”

Court records show Birchmore and Heal did not know each other when she was a minor, but her estate argued in a wrongful death lawsuit that he abused his power over a “vulnerable young adult.” Records show he also had “significant and detailed knowledge of sexual abuse” and knew Farwell was tracking Birchmore’s phone.

“Heal had a duty to protect Ms. Birchmore from abusive conduct and grooming by M. Farwell, W. Farwell and Devine and to refrain from using his status as an animal control specialist to engage in sexual contact with Ms. Birchmore,” the complaint said .

According to POST, Heal resigned from the Abington Police Department “in exchange for discipline.” He is currently certified as an unaffiliated officer; its certificate expires on July 1, 2025.

Farwell’s twin brother and former Stoughton officer, William Farwell, was decertified using the POST method last month. Robert Devine, who also allegedly had an inappropriate relationship with Birchmore, was deemed “uncertified” by the POST Commission.

Molly Farrar is an assignment reporter at Boston.com focusing on education, politics, crime and more.

Court records: Heal met Birchmore when they were adults

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