Mother of murdered Maryland mom Rachel Morin testifies on Capitol Hill on immigration policies

BALTIMORE - Patty Morin, the mother of murdered Harford County resident Rachel Morin, testified on Capitol Hill on Tuesday about how her family was impacted by the U.S.-Mexico border crisis and the Biden Administration immigration policies.

Morin, a mother of five, was killed off the Ma & Pa Trail in August 2023, allegedly by a man who was in the country illegally. 

After a 10-month nationwide manhunt, Victor Martinez Hernandez was arrested in Tulsa, Oklahoma in June. He was extradited to Maryland where he has been charged in Morin's murder.

Martinez Hernandez, who has been indicted by a grand jury and awaits trial, allegedly left his home country of El Salvador in February 2023 after an arrest warrant was issued for the murder of a woman, according to law enforcement. He was also connected to a home invasion and assault of a child in Los Angeles, authorities said.

"We felt relieved when the suspect was finally caught," Patty Morin said in her testimony. "But that quickly turned to horror and outrage when we learned that the suspect was an illegal immigrant. This man was wanted for killing a woman in his home country when he walked into ours."

Patty Morin testified before the House Committee on the Judiciary at a hearing titled "The Biden-Harris Border Crisis: Victim Perspectives."

She called for stricter border policies in the U.S. and told lawmakers, "We need to close the borders."

"Border patrol let a man with an open interpol warrant for murder walk right into our country to continue his crime spree," Patty Morin said. "The open border policy of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris caused my daughter's death. It allowed a dangerous man to flee his home country to avoid capture and bring his reign of terror to American citizens."

Family attorney Randolph Rice said Patty Morin showed "courage" to speak to lawmakers to "honor Rachel's memory and address how current border policies contributed to the devastating loss of her daughter."

"Patty's courage in speaking out during such a difficult time is admirable," Rice said. "This hearing provides a crucial platform to shed light on the consequences of our nation's border policies, and we hope her voice helps create meaningful change." 

Patty Morin sat down with WJZ's Jessica Albert for an exclusive one-on-one interview after an arrest was made this summer.  

"I mean, there's 8 billion people in the world and they found the one person out of 8 billion people. That's an amazing feat," she said in June. "I was just so very grateful that they didn't give up."

Kayla Hamilton's mother testifies

Tammy Nobles, whose daughter Kayla Hamilton was killed in Aberdeen in 2022, also testified.

A 19-year-old man from El Salvador, who also entered the country illegally, pleaded guilty to her murder and is serving life in prison.