The Salvadorian illegal migrant who raped and murdered 37-year-old Rachel Morin was sentenced Monday to life in prison without parole, showing no emotion as her grieving children remembered their “kind” and “determined” mother in court.
Harford County Circuit Court Judge Yolanda Curtin handed down the sentence to Victor Martinez-Hernandez, 24, following hours of emotional victim impact statements from Morin’s family, including four of her five children.
Family’s Heartbreak
Morin’s eldest daughter, 20, described her mom as “kind, strong, honest, determined and funny” in a written statement read aloud by the prosecutor. “I had to relive the worst two days of my life in order to write this,” she said.
Her younger children, ages 9 to 20, submitted audio messages. “She was a good mom,” her son said. “Every time I see a picture of her I think about the life I had with her and my four sisters. I miss her.”
Morin’s mother, Patty, told the court she has suffered nightmares, panic attacks, and insomnia since her daughter’s death, adding, “The depths of grief are equivalent to the depths of love felt. This will impact generations to come.”
Judge’s Rebuke
“You took a life that was not yours to take,” Judge Curtin told Martinez-Hernandez. “Your acts not only brutalized a young woman but also terrorized a community. You are not a candidate for rehabilitation.”
The convicted killer declined to speak in his own defense, offering no apology.
Brutal Crime on Maryland Trail
Martinez-Hernandez was found guilty in April of strangling Morin and smashing her head against rocks while she exercised along the Ma & Pa Heritage Trail in Bel Air on Aug. 5, 2023. He hid her partially naked body in a drainage culvert about 30 miles northeast of Baltimore.
Authorities later revealed he had entered the U.S. illegally after allegedly killing another woman in El Salvador. His arrest came nearly a year later in Tulsa, Oklahoma, when DNA from his sock matched evidence from the murder scene.
Broader Immigration Concerns
Morin’s mother has been outspoken in blaming President Joe Biden’s border policies for allowing Martinez-Hernandez to enter the country. The case drew national attention as another example of violent crimes committed by illegal migrants.
The murder of Morin came months before the killing of nursing student Laken Riley, whose murderer — illegal migrant and Tren de Aragua gang member Jose Ibarra — was also sentenced to life in prison earlier this year.
