Loyola Chicago Freshman Sheridan Gorman Shot Dead Near Campus Pier

Sheridan Gorman had walked out from her dorm with friends that night hoping to catch a view of the Chicago skyline from Tobey Prinz Beach in Rogers Park. She was the first to reach the end of the pier when she spotted a masked gunman hiding near the lighthouse. When Jose Medina came out from behind the lighthouse, Gorman and her friends ran, and Medina shot Gorman in the back. She was pronounced dead at the scene.

Medina, 25, is charged with one felony count of first-degree murder, one felony count of attempted first-degree murder, three felony counts of aggravated discharge of a firearm, and one felony count of aggravated unlawful possession of a weapon. Gorman was struck in the back, not the head, as police initially reported.

Gorman was an 18-year-old freshman from Yorktown, New York, studying business at Loyola University Chicago. She was involved in campus religious groups and devoted herself to charity, friends and family said at a vigil Thursday night at Loyola's Madonna della Strada Chapel. Kim Johnson, a faculty member who assisted Gorman in Bible study and the Christian organization Cru, remembered her simply: "She was always the first person who would hug me at a group, and she was always the last person, too."

Police announced Sunday that Medina was arrested Friday night, one block away from the scene of the shooting. Video captured Medina walking from the scene into a building in the 6800 block of North Sheridan Road; he wore all-black clothing and a mask and had a "distinct gait." Police recovered black clothing and a .40 caliber handgun inside Medina's apartment, and the gun matched the shell casing found at the shooting scene. U.S. Customs and Border Protection used facial recognition to identify the man in the video as Medina.

Medina is a Venezuelan migrant who was living in the U.S. illegally, according to the Department of Homeland Security, and has been in the country since 2023. In May 2023, federal officials say he came into contact with Border Patrol agents and was released. About a month later, he faced a single misdemeanor charge for shoplifting $132.50 of merchandise from the State Street Macy's. A judge issued a warrant after he failed to appear for a court date, and records show that outstanding warrant was still active when Gorman was killed.

Medina missed his first court appearance on Monday because he was being treated for tuberculosis, prosecutors said. Medina remains hospitalized and is scheduled for a pretrial detention hearing on Friday.

Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker issued a statement calling the killing senseless: "Our thoughts are with the family, friends, and Loyola University community grieving the senseless murder of Sheridan Gorman. Violent crime has no place in our streets, and we expect the alleged perpetrator to be held accountable to the fullest extent of the law," Pritzker said, adding: "The Trump Administration needs to stop politicizing heinous tragedies and instead focus on real solutions, like reinstating federal funds to prevent violence that support our public safety efforts."

State Senate Republicans pushed back directly. 15th Ward Ald. Ray Lopez said at a press conference that "individuals who choose to engage in dangerous, criminal behavior, if they are non-citizens, we should not give them welcome. We should not give them sanctuary." State Sen. Steve McClure went further, saying sanctuary policies had cost Illinoisans their lives and that "Gov. Pritzker is failing miserably in that responsibility."

Gorman's family did not frame what happened as random bad luck. "What Sheridan was doing that night — walking with friends near her campus — was normal. It was safe. It is what students do every day. We will not allow this to be dismissed as 'wrong place, wrong time.' This was not random misfortune. This was a violent and preventable act," the family said.

A GoFundMe started by members of her hometown community raised over $130,000 for Gorman's family as of Monday afternoon, with funds intended for memorials and possibly a scholarship in her honor. No motive has been established, and the investigation remains ongoing.