Oversight board decertifies former Stoughton deputy chief tied to Sandra Birchmore case

Former Stoughton deputy police chief Robert Devine had his law enforcement certification revoked by the state’s police oversight board last week. The board found that Devine engaged in misconduct involving Sandra Birchmore, a woman who was allegedly killed in 2021 by a different former member of the Stoughton Police Department. 

A hearing officer issued an initial decision against Devine in October, and he appealed the decision in November. The Peace Officer Standards and Training Commission voted last Thursday to decertify Devine. He is now prohibited from serving as a police officer in Massachusetts, and his decertification will be reported to a national database used by law enforcement officials across the country.  

The commission’s findings were laid out in a 30-page ruling that is now publicly available online. The document outlines an alleged pattern of unprofessional conduct that Devine engaged in, some of which involved Birchmore. 

“Over the last several years of his career, his interest in his reputation and what benefited him far outweighed any concern he had for the public interest,” the ruling stated.

The allegations not involving Birchmore concerned a series of events in 2014, when Devine was allegedly having an extra-marital relationship with an unidentified woman. He improperly ordered a subordinate to investigate a potential crime twice, in response to him and his family being harassed online. 

State Police investigated Devine’s girlfriend because of this harassment, but Devine did not tell investigators about his continued relationship with her, according to the ruling. After an internal affairs investigation, Devine was suspended for 60 days and demoted three ranks, from deputy chief to patrol officer.

The other allegations involve Birchmore, identified by her initials in the ruling. Birchmore was found dead in her Canton apartment in February 2021 at the age of 23. She was pregnant at the time. Birchmore’s death was originally ruled a suicide, but former Stoughton police officer Matthew Farwell was charged with her murder last year. He also stands accused of killing her unborn child. 

Prosecutors say that Farwell groomed Birchmore from the time she was a teenager, engaging in a continued sexual relationship that began when she was underage. Believing that he was the father of Birchmore’s child, Farwell is alleged to have killed her and staged her death to look like a suicide. 

Devine oversaw the Stoughton Police Explorers program, which was meant to help expose middle and high school students to careers in law enforcement. Birchmore enrolled in the program at the age of 13, in 2010. 

Investigators found that Devine communicated with Birchmore multiple times during late 2020 and early 2021 using the alias Marty Riggs, a character in the “Lethal Weapon” movie franchise. He met with Birchmore while on duty in December 2020 and engaged in a sexual encounter with her, according to the ruling. The hearing officer found that Devine was untruthful when asked about his relationship with Birchmore during an internal affairs investigation. 

Devine denied the allegations against him, arguing that they rely on unreliable evidence, according to the ruling. He has accused Birchmore of being a liar and said that he was targeted by computer hackers. 

The commission rejected Devine’s claims, saying that he received a fair hearing. There is clear and convincing evidence that Devine communicated with Birchmore multiple times, met her for a sexual encounter, and lied to investigators, the commission found. 

“[Devine] was in a position of power over [Birchmore] when he met her as a middle school student, and, thereafter, when she was a Police Explorer.  Particularly given her vulnerabilities, he was able to maintain that position over her for several years and leveraged this position to develop a relationship with [Birchmore], which eventually became sexual,” the ruling stated. 

“Once again, Devine exploited his position of power within the police department and was untruthful when it benefitted him.  Despite that the information he concealed may have been relevant to the investigation of [Birchmore]’s death, Devine lied to protect himself and his reputation,” the ruling continued. 

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