Rachel Morin Murder Case: Trials Ahead as Jury Selection Begins

BEL AIR, Md. — The trial of Victor Martinez-Hernandez, accused of murdering Rachel Morin, is set to begin this week, as jury selection commences tomorrow. During a pretrial hearing on March 31, 2025, the court revealed plans to summon nearly 400 potential jurors. The trial is a significant legal event following Morin’s tragic disappearance during a jog on the Ma and Pa Trail in August 2023.

Morin, a 37-year-old mother of five, went missing on August 5, 2023, and her body was discovered the following day along the trail. Prosecutors allege she was brutally raped and killed by Martinez-Hernandez, who was arrested in June 2024 after a nationwide manhunt. He faces charges of first-degree murder and rape, with evidence expected to include DNA, digital forensics, and multiple recorded videos from doorbell cameras and police interviews.

During Monday’s hearing, Morin’s mother, Patty Moran, attended with her attorney, Randolph Rice, expressing the emotional toll of the upcoming trial. “She said she is very sad today. This is tough because you’re sitting in a courtroom about to see some really, really tough images of your daughter,” Rice reported. He added, “She said something today that was interesting, that God is with her.”

Rice voiced optimism that an impartial jury can be assembled from Harford County’s population of over 200,000 residents. “There are people all the time that I run into, and I ask, ‘Have you ever heard of the Rachel Morin case?’ and they say they haven’t. So, I have no doubt that they’re going to be able to find 12 jurors that are going to be fair and impartial to hear the facts of this case,” he stated.

The defense team remains concerned about pretrial publicity affecting the jury pool. They have requested a sequestered jury for the duration of the trial, which is expected to last at least two and a half weeks. However, the presiding Judge Yolanda Curtin denied this request, calling sequestration “extreme and nearly impossible in 2025.” She also rejected additional questioning of potential jurors, labeling them as a “fishing expedition.”n

Jury selection is scheduled over three days this week, with 120 to 130 jurors reporting each day. The court aims to have a final panel ready by Friday morning, followed by opening statements and the presentation of evidence.