HARFORD COUNTY, Md. — The criminal case may be over, but Rachel Morin’s family’s time in court is not for now.
After a duplicate lawsuit was filed in May by Morin’s five children, her mother and sister who are named as defendants are seeking for it to be thrown out over meritless claims.
The basis of the suit centers around a battle over financial donations received following Morin’s August 2023 murder at the Ma and Pa trail in Bel Air.
On Monday, a judge sentenced Victor Martinez-Hernandez to the maximum punishment under state law.
Hear from family as the ongoing legal battle over GoFundMe proceeds continues
"You took a life that was not yours to take," Judge Yolanda Curtin said before issuing her ruling.
The 24-year-old was booked into the Jessup Correctional Facility on Tuesday to begin his consecutive life sentences.
Before the defendant was discovered following a 10 month manhunt, several community fundraisers as well as a GoFundMe that collected more than $54,000, intended to support Morin’s funeral and her children.
The money has continued to be a source of tension behind the scenes, as the case has garnered national attention.
“This is just another band-aid that keeps getting ripped off the wound,” Matt McMahon, who is the father of Morin’s eldest daughter, said.
20-year-old Faye McMahon and her four underage siblings represented by their respective fathers, Joseph Custer and Jonathan Alderson, filed the suit weeks after April’s guilty verdict.
Though not a party on the lawsuit, Matt McMahon’s been a proponent of the funds going towards the children.
“Faye’s got a daughter right now, it’s like, she could use some of that love and support to help care for her daughter, and she can’t,” McMahon said. “It's a shame that this is still going on because this could be a moment that they could try to move on and move forward with their lives, but now they're going to be stuck dealing with this.”
“There are so many different ways that Rachel's been used as a tool to divide people,” he added.
However, in a motion to dismiss, the defendants claim they’ve established a trust for the benefit of the children where not a cent has been taken out, and statements have been provided to the plaintiffs to prove as much.
“The general allegations that they have not yet received any funds raised or Christmas presents does not constitute a cause of action for fraud,” the motion states.
“[T]hey are well aware that every penny deposited in the Trust remains in the Trust, which is currently being held for their benefit pursuant to the terms of the Trust documents.”
The suit is virtually the same as the one filed in Fall 2024, where a voluntary settlement was reached in February, according to court filings.
Defense attorney Randolph Rice argues the plaintiffs did not hold up their end of the deal to formally file to dismiss the matter for good by May 5, instead re-opening the case and failing to prove actual fraud.
WMAR-2 News caught up with Patty Morin following Monday’s hearing, who said she did not know what she could and could not say about the ongoing suit.
“I think at the moment we just want to process today,” she said.
A judge will hear arguments on the motion to dismiss on September 18 in Harford County.
Faye McMahon has also expressed interested in filing a wrongful death lawsuit against Martinez-Hernandez to ensure he may never see any money in his prison account.
