CHICAGO (WBBM Newsradio) – A 25-year-old man has been charged in the fatal shooting of a Loyola University Chicago freshman on the city’s North Side, as federal immigration officials move to keep the suspect in custody.
Chicago police said Jose Medina, of the Rogers Park neighborhood, faces first-degree murder and other felony charges in the death of 18-year-old Sheridan Gorman. The freshman from Yorktown Heights, New York, was shot shortly after 1 a.m. Thursday on the Tobey Prinz Beach pier.
Investigators said Gorman was walking with friends when a gunman approached, produced a weapon and fired as she tried to run. She was struck in the head and later died from her injuries. Officers recovered a shell casing at the scene.
Police said surveillance video helped identify the suspect, who was seen walking to a nearby apartment building after the shooting. Authorities noted Medina’s “distinct limp” as part of the identification.
The Department of Homeland Security said Sunday that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has issued a detainer for Medina, asking Illinois officials not to release him. DHS said Medina is a Venezuelan national who entered the United States illegally in 2023.
According to DHS, Medina was previously arrested in Chicago that same year on a misdemeanor shoplifting charge. Court records show a warrant was later issued after he failed to appear in court.
A motive in the shooting has not been released.
Gorman was a business major at Loyola and was involved in campus organizations, friends said. In a statement, her family thanked law enforcement for the quick arrest but said the case represents “the first step toward justice.”
“This case must be prosecuted to the fullest extent of both state and federal law,” the family said in a statement. “There can be no gaps, no shortcuts, and no second chances that put others at risk.”
A detention hearing for Medina is scheduled for Monday.