'She Will Always Be Loved': Loved Ones Remember Late 18-Year-Old College Student Sheridan Gorman

The case surrounding the student's death began unfolding into something even more chilling, with haunting witness observations, surveillance clues, and a wave of grief that made clear this is a loss far bigger than a single headline.

What began as a simple late-night plan between friends has become one of those stories that is almost impossible to read without your chest tightening. And the more that emerges about Sheridan Gorman's final hours, the more heartbreaking this tragedy becomes.

At first glance, it sounds like the kind of sweet college memory that was supposed to live on in photos and late-night retellings.

Instead, Gorman's loved ones are now left clinging to memories, demanding answers, and trying to make sure the 18-year-old is remembered for far more than the horror of how her life ended.

A Night That Was Meant to Be Ordinary

Gorman was a freshman at Loyola University Chicago, far from home but just beginning what should have been an exciting new chapter. She was from Westchester County, New York, and friends said she had already made a bright impression on campus in the short time she'd been there.

She was studying business, building friendships, and getting involved with the Christian campus group Cru. Classmates described her as cheerful, "always smiling," and the kind of person whose warmth traveled quickly. And then came the night that changed everything…

As reported by NBC Chicago, Gorman had left her dorm to catch a glimpse of the Northern Lights with friends when she was shot and killed around 2:11 a.m. Thursday near Tobey Prinz Beach in Chicago's Rogers Park neighborhood, close to campus.

Authorities said the masked gunman approached Gorman and her friends and fired in their direction. Gorman was struck and died at the scene.

Her family's statement made clear just how normal and innocent that outing had been. "She was exactly where she should have been—close to campus, surrounded by friends, living her life," they said.

Another quote from the campus community drove that point home even further. "She was doing everything right… there was nothing she could have done differently," one student said, and honestly, that may be one of the most haunting truths in this entire case.

The Kind of Girl People Never Forget

Gorman's loved ones described the loss in devastating terms. They said their lives have been shattered and called Gorman "our daughter, our sister, and the heart of our family."

They said she was "full of life, full of kindness, and full of a love that she gave freely to everyone around her." It is the portrait of a young woman whose impact had nothing to do with the number of years she lived and everything to do with how deeply she loved. According to her family, Gorman made people feel seen, and she made people feel valued.

Whether it was family, friends, or someone she had just met, they said she had a way of leaving people better than she found them. That is not the kind of description people offer lightly. Her death sent immediate shockwaves through Loyola's campus.

Hundreds gathered for a vigil Thursday night to celebrate her life, while flowers and candles began piling up at the pier where she was killed.

That growing memorial became a symbol of both grief and fear. Many students said the shooting left them deeply uneasy, especially because Gorman had not been alone and had not been in a place considered dangerous.

One student said Loyola usually feels like a safe campus and that what happened was "out of the ordinary." That sense of disbelief has hung over the school ever since.

But Gorman's family has refused to let this story become just another tragic headline that people absorb and move past, as they have been heartbreakingly clear that what was taken was not an abstract idea, but an entire future.

"What happened to Sheridan cannot be reduced to the idea of someone being in the wrong place at the wrong time," they said. "This is not an abstraction." They called it what it is: the loss of a daughter, the loss of a sister, and the loss of milestones that will now never come to be. Their family, they said, is forever changed.

That same message came through again in reporting from CBS News, which quoted Gorman's family saying, "What Sheridan was doing that night—walking with friends near her campus—was normal. It was safe. It is what students do every day."

They added, "We will not allow this to be dismissed as 'wrong place, wrong time.' This was not random [sic] misfortune. This was a violent and preventable act." That is a striking distinction, and one they are clearly determined to repeat until it is heard.

The family also made another painful point. "This cannot be just another case that fades from public attention. Sheridan's life mattered. What happened to her matters. And we will make sure she is not forgotten."

That insistence set the tone for what followed next, because as the mourning unfolded, investigators were also piecing together chilling details about the suspect and the moments after the shooting… And that is where the story took an even darker turn.

​​Details from the Incident and the Trail Investigators Followed

As reported by the Chicago Tribune, 25-year-old Jose Medina of the 6800 block of North Sheridan Road was charged with first-degree murder, attempted murder, three counts of aggravated assault with a firearm, and aggravated unlawful possession of a weapon.

The outlet reported that Gorman was shot shortly after 1 a.m. Thursday on the Loyola Beach Pier. A Rogers Park police report said officers found her on the pier with a gunshot wound to the back.

Officers also recovered a single shell casing about 40 feet from her body. According to the report, witnesses said a man in black clothes and a black mask pointed a gun at Gorman and fired one round as she tried to run away.

That detail alone is devastating. But the surveillance trail that followed made the case even more chilling. The Tribune reported that nearby surveillance video allegedly captured the suspect just minutes after the shooting, walking westbound toward Pratt Avenue. Investigators were able to identify him in part because of his "distinct limp."

He then allegedly entered a nearby apartment building and appeared on internal surveillance cameras without a mask.

And then came yet another revealing detail from ABC Chicago. Witnesses told police they had been suspicious of a man hiding near the pier before the shooting and said they saw him walking "with a very distinct and slow gait."

When Gorman and her group of friends came upon him, he allegedly wore a mask and all-black clothing. Prosecutors said he then fired shots as the group ran.

ABC Chicago also reported that Gorman died from her injuries. After reviewing the surveillance video, police tracked the suspect to his home near North Sheridan Road, just a couple of blocks from the scene. He was arrested there.

When a lobby camera captured him without a mask, investigators used facial recognition software before U.S. Customs and Border Protection records returned a match for the Venezuelan national. Inside Medina's apartment, officers allegedly found the clothing he was believed to have been wearing during the shooting.

They also recovered a .40-caliber handgun that matched shell casings found at the scene. Monday's pretrial detention hearing was postponed because Medina was still being treated for tuberculosis at Illinois Masonic Hospital.

The same report said he is due back in court Friday morning, as long as doctors approve his release. The case has since exploded into a much broader public debate because of Medina's immigration and criminal history.

ABC Chicago reported that the Department of Homeland Security said Medina is an undocumented immigrant who allegedly entered the country in 2023 and remained in Chicago despite earlier law-enforcement contact.

According to that report, Medina was arrested by Border Patrol in 2023 and then released. Chicago police also arrested him later that same year on retail theft charges tied to a Macy's store in the city.

Court records showed he failed to appear on those charges, prompting an arrest warrant. Additionally, local and federal officials have since argued he should not have been free on the streets. The case has also drawn comments from several high-profile figures. U.S. President Donald Trump said, "It's devastating," before blaming the prior administration and praising ICE.

Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker's office issued a statement saying violent crime has no place in Chicago's streets and that the alleged perpetrator should be held accountable to the fullest extent of the law.

The governor's office also accused the Trump administration of politicizing a heinous tragedy instead of focusing on prevention and public-safety funding.

The pain of Gorman's loss is being felt the most by her bereaved parents, whom Archdiocese of Chicago Cardinal Blase Cupich said are taking this "very hard."

He then shared a heartbreaking line from her father: "Every parent says that their kid is the best in the world, but mine was." The family's attorney has also spoken forcefully. In statements, Gorman's loved ones said they are grateful for the quick work of police, but emphasized that an arrest is not the same thing as justice.

"Their efforts matter. But this is not justice— it is the first step toward it," the family said. They added that the case must be prosecuted to the fullest extent of both state and federal law.

They also acknowledged Medina's "prior encounters with the system" and said they were "gravely disappointed by the policies and failures that allowed this individual to remain in a position to commit this crime."

The federal response has only added more scrutiny. On its website, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said ICE lodged an arrest detainer asking Illinois officials not to release Medina.

Local officials, however, have said Chicago must first prosecute the felony case. So while the legal fight continues, Gorman's family is left waiting for the next steps in a process they never asked to be part of. Still, through every statement, one thing keeps coming through more loudly than anything else: who Gorman was.

The Promises Now Made in Her Name

Her family said she was only 18 and "just beginning her journey as a college freshman—embracing new experiences, building friendships, and living the life every parent hopes their child will have." That image makes the loss feel even crueler. They said Gorman deserved a full life and deserved the future that was taken from her.

And then came the line that now stands as both tribute and promise: "We will not allow her to be remembered as just another story. She was extraordinary, and she will always be loved."

Outside the courtroom and beyond the headlines, that love has been made visible in quieter, deeply moving ways, too. One of the clearest examples is a GoFundMe created to support Gorman's family and honor her memory.

Funds raised will go toward remembrance and memorial activities, as well as creating a memorial and/or scholarship in Gorman's name. The goal is to ensure that her light continues to shine in service and support of others, something the family says she truly believed in.

And the response has been enormous, as of the campaign's $180,000 goal, it has raised over $150,000 thus far.

There is also an online tribute wall, where loved ones can leave messages, share memories, and honor Gorman's life. Even as the case moves through the courts, Gorman's family has continued asking the public not to turn away. In their NBC Chicago statement, they thanked supporters, but stressed that gratitude alone is not enough.

They urged anyone with information to come forward and speak with law enforcement. Such people are encouraged to contact Campus Safety at 773-508-SAFE, or the Chicago Police Department at 911 or 312-744-8263. They also made a broader appeal that feels bigger than this one case. They said they cannot accept a world where moments like this become something people grow used to.

"We cannot allow ourselves to become desensitized to violence," they said. "Apathy is not harmless—it allows these moments to repeat." It is a line that feels as much like a warning as it does a cry of pain.

At the center of all the legal filings, surveillance details, and public arguments is a teenage girl who stepped out with friends, hoping to look up at the sky. It should have been ordinary, and it should have been safe.

Instead, her family is now left mourning a daughter and sister they describe as extraordinary, while classmates remember a smiling freshman whose future had only just begun. And in the middle of all of it, the people who loved Gorman most are making one thing crystal clear: she will always be loved, and she will not be forgotten.

At this time, we wish to extend our most heartfelt condolences to Gorman's parents, her entire family, loved ones, friends, classmates, community, and all who knew and loved her as they mourn such a significant loss. We hope for their healing amid their time of grief. RIP, dear Gorman.