During the high-profile trial of Victor Martinez-Hernandez, the undocumented immigrant who is accused of killing Rachel Morin, a mother of five, on a hiking trail in Harford County in 2023, attorneys debated how to best shield prospective jurors from the media attention.
Over the next three days, beginning Tuesday, Judge Yolanda Curtain will call a record number of possible jurors—more than 120—each day.
Particularly after Michael Morin, Rachel’s brother, spoke at the 2024 Republican National Committee (RNC) Convention, the issue attracted widespread attention.
“Rachel, a joyful, accomplished athlete and mother of five, was raped and murdered by a suspected illegal immigrant,” Michael stated. “My sister’s death was preventable.”
Given that Martinez-Hernandez, the man suspected of killing Morin, is an El Salvadorian, it also intensified conversations about immigration.
In this case, the jury selection process is anticipated to continue until Friday, when the jury will be seated and the opening statements will start. It is anticipated that the trial would continue until April 16.
Publicity-related queries
During Monday’s pre-trial session, a number of concerns over how to conduct the trial were brought up due to the case’s high notoriety.
Wearing a striped detention centre uniform and shackles, Martinez-Hernandez was taken to the Harford County court.
According to his lawyer, “this is probably the most high-profile case in this country’s history.”
According to the defence team, President Donald Trump made reference to the case in an executive order.
Addressing “rampant fraud and meritless claims” in the U.S. immigration system was the goal of the executive order, which was issued in the middle of March.
“…this fraud in turn undermines the integrity of our immigration laws and the legal profession more broadly – to say nothing of the undeniable, tragic consequences of the resulting mass illegal immigration, whether in terms of heinous crimes against innocent victims like Laken Riley, Jocelyn Nungaray, or Rachel Morin…” According to the executive order,
Since assuming office, Mr. Trump has stepped up efforts to combat illegal immigration in the United States, reversing a number of regulations implemented under the Biden administration and directing an increase in the number of arrests and deportations made by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
The defence team expressed concerns during Monday’s pre-trial hearing that prospective jurors would learn about Martinez-Hernandez’s immigration status and other offences he is accused of. They also asked that the jury selection procedure include a detailed account of the crime.
A simple summary would suffice, the judge disagreed.
Update: The judge rejects the defense’s request to keep the jury in the hotel for the trial. Additionally, the judge rejects the defense’s request to have jurors complete a questionnaire. The defence contended that the high level of publicity surrounding Victor Martinez-Hernandez @wjz #RachelMorin— Mike Hellgren (@HellgrenWJZ) March 31, 2025, made this essential.
A motion to require each juror to complete a questionnaire was also denied by the judge, as was the defense’s attempt to sequester the jury during the trial.
The judge stated during the pre-trial hearing that she will make a decision later on regarding whether or not to ask jurors if they watched the RNC convention.
Because an unbiased jury could not be convened, Martinez-Hernandez’s lawyers argued in January that he would not be able to get a fair trial and asked that his trial be transferred outside of Harford County.
Where is Rachel Morin now?
In 2023, Morin—a mother of five—left her house to go for a run in Harford County along the Ma & Pa Trail. On August 5, 2023, she was reported missing, and the next day, her body was discovered next to the route.
After a countrywide manhunt, Martinez-Hernandez was taken into custody in Oklahoma in June 2023. He is being charged with a number of crimes related to the Morin’s murder.
According to law authorities, Martinez-Hernandez attacked Morin while she was walking while hiding in a drainage ditch.
Martinez-Hernandez entered the United States in February 2023 when he was wanted for the death of a woman in El Salvador, according to Harford County Sheriff Jeff Gahler.
In 2023, he entered the United States illegally three times and was arrested by border patrol officials.
In March 2023, Martinez-Hernandez was also charged with assaulting a toddler and her mother at a California residence, investigators said.
Sheriff Gahler claimed to have ties to well-known gangs and connections to the Washington, D.C., region.
Additional protection
The streets around the Harford County Circuit Courthouse doors are blocked off, and security is strict.
Marcus Jenkins, a defence lawyer for Martinez-Hernandez, described this case as “probably the most high-profile case in this county’s history.”
In August 2023, Martinez-Hernandez, who faces life in prison if found guilty of raping and killing Morin, went for a run on the Ma and Pa path after being caught at a bar in Tulsa, Oklahoma, in 2024.
A mother’s suffering as a jury is seated
On Monday, Patty Morin sat in the courtroom two rows behind the person who is suspected of killing her daughter.
“She said she is very sad today,” Randolph Rice, the lawyer, said Mike Hellgren, the WJZ investigator. “This is sort of tough because you’re sitting in a courtroom about to see some really, really tough, tough images of your daughter and hear some bad facts about what happened to your daughter,” Rice stated. “She mentioned that God was with her today. She understands that everything occurs for a purpose, and this is no exception. She simply needs to accept that this is the way things will turn out.
Rice is the spokesperson for the vocal Patty Morin. She spoke before Congress and accompanied Donald Trump on the campaign road to call for more immigration enforcement.
“I was told that she was beaten so badly that her body was blanketed with bruises, that she was strangled, that she was raped and that she was stuffed into a drain pipe,” Patty Morin told MPs in December of 2017.
Rice told WJZ that he anticipates no trouble in locating impartial and equitable jurors.
“I frequently see people and ask them whether they are familiar with the Rachel Morin case. And they claim not to have, so I’m certain they’ll be able to locate 12 jurors who can hear the case’s facts and who will be fair and unbiased,” Rice added.
In court, a suspect
When Martinez-Hernandez appeared in court, he was chained. He had a new haircut and was dressed in a pinstriped jumpsuit from the Harford County Detention Centre.
He did not speak to the judge on the record, and two interpreters translated the proceedings for him.
Questions raised about publicity of Rachel Morin’s murder before trial in Maryland.
