Det. Broccoli

She was just a child. The text messages that exploded into public view during the trial of Matthew Farwell for killing Sandra Birchmore are a blueprint for dangerous predators. Farwell exploited Sandra's vulnerabilities. He gained her trust, convinced her that he cared about her, drew her into his sick and dark world, and used the authority of his badge to create the illusion that she was safe with him. Devoid of human decency and any redeemable human qualities, he sexually exploited her, repeatedly, for years. The very person she trusted to protect her became the person she needed protection from. I spent more than two decades on the Juvenile Court bench. I saw the devastation of grooming and sexual exploitation in the faces of young teens who came into my courtroom. Children who had been manipulated by predatory adults who knew exactly how to exploit their vulnerabilities. I know what sexual exploitation looks like. I know the destruction it leaves behind. What Farwell did to Sandra was the carefully calculated predatory grooming and sexual exploitation of a vulnerable child. He knew exactly how much power he held over her. Amid the testimony, the text messages, and the legal arguments, never lose sight of who Sandra was when this began. She was a child.