Gorman family calls out Johnson and Pritzker following college student's killing in Chicago

The household of Sheridan Gorman is pushing backmost connected comments from Chicago and Illinois leaders, saying her sidesplitting was not a "senseless tragedy" and demanding accountability for what they telephone systemic failures.

18-year-old Gorman was killed connected March 19 astatine astir 1:06 a.m. portion she was with friends astatine a pier connected the city's Rogers Park area. Officials accidental that Jose Medina-Medina, 25, an amerciable migrant from Venezuela, allegedly fired 1 changeable astatine the Loyola University Chicago student, sidesplitting her. Medina-Medina was apprehended by the U.S. Border Patrol connected May 9, 2023, and was released into the U.S. nether the Biden administration, according to the Department of Homeland Security.

The Gorman household connected Wednesday released a connection criticizing some Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, saying that her decease "demands accountability."

"What happened to Sheridan cannot beryllium reduced to a ‘senseless tragedy,’ nor tin it beryllium explained successful wide presumption astir nationalist safety. Sheridan was our daughter. She was 18 years old. She was doing thing wholly normal—walking adjacent her field with friends. She should beryllium here," the Gorman household said regarding caller comments by Johnson.

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Loyola University Chicago pupil Sheridan Gorman poses with the school’s mascot during a field lawsuit successful an undated photo. (Sheridan G. Gorman via Instagram)

"Calling this ‘senseless’ is not enough. There indispensable beryllium a wide and honorable accounting of what went wrong," the household added. "We volition not let Sheridan’s beingness to beryllium reduced to a talking constituent oregon a generalization. We expect enactment that is consenting to face hard truths and guarantee that what happened to her does not hap again."

Gorman's household besides responded to Gov. Pritzker's caller comments connected the freshman assemblage student's death, penning that "calling this a calamity is not enough."

"Sheridan’s decease cannot beryllium reduced to a wide "tragedy," nor tin it beryllium explained distant by wide references to failures determination else. Sheridan was a daughter, a sister, and a young pistillate whose beingness was taken successful a mode that should ne'er person been possible," the household said. "We are not funny successful governmental arguments oregon successful watching work displacement from 1 spot to another. If determination were failures—as the Governor himself has acknowledged—then each 1 of them indispensable beryllium identified, examined, and addressed directly. The determination of those failures matters little than the willingness to face them honestly."

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Jose Medina-Medina, a Venezuelan national, was besides arrested for shoplifting and released earlier the alleged murder, DHS confirmed.  (DHS)

"Our girl is not a argumentation debate. She is simply a beingness that was taken, and that demands accountability," they added.

Pritzker connected Tuesday shifted blasted to the Trump medication during an event, according to the Chicago Tribune.

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"This has been a unspeakable tragedy, and I cognize that the Gorman household has suffered mightily… There person been existent failures. Those failures, of course, widen beyond the borders of Illinois. That’s their nationalist failures, a nonaccomplishment to person broad migration reform, a nonaccomplishment of the president to travel his ain edict to spell aft the worst of the worst," Pritzker said. 

Johnson connected Tuesday besides addressed Gorman's death, saying that her beingness was taken owed to "senseless violence," but called retired President Trump arsenic well.

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Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson speaks astatine a rally successful Chicago connected Oct. 18, 2025.  (Daniel Boczarski/Getty Images)

"There's nary words that 1 could explicit that could decently console a household that mislaid their baby. And my condolences to the Gorman family," Johnson said. "You cognize what the bigger menace to our nationalist safety, it's amerciable weapons that are being trafficked from bordering states that voted for Donald Trump. This president refuses to beryllium held accountable. And helium points the digit astatine everything and everyone other versus doing immoderate existent self-reflection connected what his work is."

"We cognize that this president has not taken this concern successful this situation successful our state seriously, due to the fact that my question would be, isn't it clip for the president of the United States of America successful Congress to really enactment and walk broad migration reform?" Johnson continued.

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Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, center, speaks successful Chicago. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)

"There's nary words that 1 could explicit that could decently console a household that mislaid their baby. And my condolences to the Gorman family," Johnson said. 

In a connection to Fox News Digital, White House Spokeswoman Abigail Jackson said President Donald Trump's migration policies person kept Americans safe.

"In grounds time, President Trump has wholly secured the border, ended Biden’s borderline crisis, and deported countless unsafe transgression amerciable aliens. Those are existent solutions that support the American radical safe. Meanwhile, slobs similar Pritzker person perpetually defended unsafe transgression amerciable aliens and attempted to obstruct the important enactment of the Trump Administration. Pritzker’s policies marque the American radical little safe," Jackson said.

Homes successful Yorktown Heights, New York, Gorman's hometown, were lit up successful greenish connected Tuesday nighttime to grant the slain Chicago assemblage student. according to CBS News.

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A location displays a greenish structure airy successful grant of murdered Loyola student, Sheridan Gorman, successful Yorktown Heights, N.Y., Tuesday, March 24, 2026. Gorman was changeable to decease successful Chicago past week, allegedly by an amerciable migrant. (Fox News Digital)

A location displays a greenish structure airy successful grant of murdered Loyola student, Sheridan Gorman, successful Yorktown Heights, N.Y., Tuesday, March 24, 2026. Gorman was changeable to decease successful Chicago past week, allegedly by an amerciable migrant. (Fox News Digital)

A location displays a greenish structure airy successful grant of murdered Loyola student, Sheridan Gorman, successful Yorktown Heights, N.Y., Tuesday, March 24, 2026. Gorman was changeable to decease successful Chicago past week, allegedly by an amerciable migrant. (Fox News Digital)

An apprehension study obtained by obtained by Fox News Digital shows that Medina-Medina was seen connected information video successful his flat building's lobby waiting for an elevator portion unmasked aft the alleged shooting. A gathering technologist told constabulary that helium knew the suspect, who had a "very chiseled limp and gait." 

Police said Medina-Medina was wearing a achromatic disguise and achromatic covering arsenic helium walked distant from the shooting, noting that helium had a "distinct limp and dilatory gait." He was seen walking from the determination of the shooting to Pratt Boulevard astatine 1:12 a.m. Just a fewer minutes later, the idiosyncratic was seen walking northbound done the eastbound alley of Sheridan Road earlier helium entered the backmost of his flat complex.

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Sheridan Gorman was killed aft being changeable successful the caput portion taking a locomotion with friends astatine Tobey Prinz Beach, located little than a mile from the Illinois’ campus, astir 1 a.m. connected Thursday, according to reports. (Sheridan G. Gorman via Instagram)

Images of the fishy were sent to a constabulary database, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection identified the fishy arsenic Medina-Medina. He was arrested astatine his flat successful Rogers Park, according to the apprehension report.

Medina-Medina told officials successful 2023 that helium was surviving astatine Leone Beach Park fieldhouse successful Rogers Park successful 2023, which was being utilized arsenic a city-sponsored structure for migrants. The structure closed successful 2024, according to South Side Weekly.

Fox News Digital reached retired to Johnson and Pritzker's office.