Rachel Morin’s alleged killer came face to face with her family in court for the first time today, but refused to look at them.
Victor Martinez Hernandez, 23, is charged with the rape or murder of the 37-year-old, whose naked body was found last year on a hiking trail in Maryland.
The El-Salvador-born illegal migrant “entered the courtroom with an apathetic expression, avoiding eye contact with both the family and the prosecutors,” lawyers for Morin’s loved ones said in a statement.
The sight of the accused “brought an overwhelming sense of sadness and grief” to Morin’s mother Patty, “who tearfully commented on the pain of seeing the man accused of taking her daughter’s life.”
His action came just weeks after Morin’s mother Patty Morin told Congress she believes her daughter’s murder could have been prevented with stricter border controls that would have picked up Hernandez’s outstanding murder warrant in his home country.
Rachel Morin’s suspected killer has appeared in court for the first time during a hearing that postponed her next court appearance until April 1, 2025
During the pre-trial hearing in Harford County Circuit Court, the defense successfully requested a postponement of the trial until April 1, 2025.
‘The family is strong and is working on this, knowing that justice will take time. We remain committed to ensuring that Rachel’s memory is honored and justice is served,” said attorney Randolph Rice.
Hernandez faces six charges, including second- and first-degree murder, rape and kidnapping.
If convicted, prosecutors are seeking life in prison without the possibility of parole.
He is currently receiving psychological care at the Harford County Detention Center, although he is not currently taking any medications.
Rice told DailyMail.com that Hernandez seemed “stone cold” during the hearing, even as Patty stared intently at him.
“Patti was visibly upset, but she showed no anger whatsoever. She is a very religious woman,” Rice explained.
“But knowing that her daughter’s death was preventable, there were so many steps along the way, I mean he was stopped three times and driven to Mexico.”
Hernandez crossed the southern border in February 2023 after allegedly killing another woman in El Salvador a month earlier.
He is additionally accused of attacking a nine-year-old girl and her mother in Los Angeles in March 2023, before Morin’s murder.
Victor Martinez Hernandez, 23, is charged with the rape or murder of the 37-year-old
Morin was reported missing by her boyfriend Richard Tobin (pictured together) after she went for a run on hiking trails and didn’t return
Morin’s mother Patty Morin said her daughter’s death could have been prevented if there had been tighter security at the border, which would have allowed an outstanding arrest warrant for the suspect to be picked up in connection with another crime.
Mother of five Morin disappeared while walking the popular Ma and Pa hiking trail in Bel Air, about 45 miles (72 kilometers) north of Baltimore.
Her naked and battered body was found the day after she was reported missing.
Six months later, Maryland investigators released a sketch of Morin’s suspected killer as her family begged the public to solve the case.
According to investigators, Hernandez was believed to have been hiding next to the popular hiking trail when he allegedly killed Morin.
He allegedly assaulted, raped and murdered her before fleeing the state. Tulsa police said he was tracked down in Oklahoma after officials in the state were contacted by the FBI.
Officials said he initially lied about his identity and denied any knowledge of the crimes for which he was wanted.
They said they managed to link him to Morin’s murder using sophisticated DNA evidence.
Investigators were able to track the suspect from Prince George’s County, Maryland, 1,300 miles west to Oklahoma.
The suspect in Morin’s murder has been linked by DNA to a home invasion and assault in LA in March 2023 and had an outstanding murder warrant in El Salvador.
The hearing took place Friday in Harford County Circuit Court
He was arrested on what would have been Morin’s 38th birthday, ten months after she first disappeared.
Morin’s murder fueled debates over illegal immigrants after details of his previous alleged crimes emerged.
Morin’s mother, Patty Morin, criticized the Biden-Harris administration’s immigration policies last month.
She shared heartbreaking congressional testimony during a hearing titled “A Country Without Borders: How Biden and Harris’ Open Borders Policies Have Undermined Our Safety and Security.”
“If they had followed the border protocols that were in place but had been set aside, just a simple DNA swab, they would know he had an INTERPOL warrant for murder in his home country,” Morin told the House Committee on Homeland Security.
The body of the 37-year-old mother of five was discovered naked on the popular hiking trail and smashed into a tunnel along a popular hiking trail in Bel Air, Maryland
The trial on Morin’s murder has been postponed until April 1, 2025
‘They say the borders are safe. We live 2,000 miles from the southern border. They are not safe.’
Despite the grieving mother’s comments, studies have shown that immigrants are generally less likely to commit crimes than U.S.-born citizens.
However, the issue has come into focus following a series of high-profile crimes allegedly committed by illegal migrants.
These included the rape and murder of Jocelyn Nungaray, 12, the murder of nursing student Laken Riley, 22, and the murder of Kayla Hamilton, 20, which occurred in the same county as Morin’s murder a year earlier.