January 1, Chicago Campus Tragedy Raises Questions After Late-Night Shooting

Wyatt’s Take

• Sheridan Gorman, an 18-year-old Loyola University Chicago freshman, was killed in an apparently unprovoked shooting.
• Police say a 25-year-old Venezuelan migrant was arrested after investigators traced a distinctive limp from surveillance footage.
• The suspect had an active warrant and prior shoplifting arrest, according to court records.

A senseless tragedy has claimed the life of an 18-year-old college freshman at Loyola University Chicago.

Police arrested a 25-year-old Venezuelan migrant following the unprovoked shooting on a lakefront pier.

Officers executed a search warrant and discovered a firearm in the suspect’s residence.

Ballistics testing is currently underway to match the weapon to a shell casing found at the scene.

Witnesses said a masked man in black pointed a gun at Sheridan as she tried to run away.

The teen died from a single gunshot wound to the torso while simply enjoying the evening.

Court records indicate the suspect had an active warrant since September 2023 for failing to appear in court.

He had previously been arrested for shoplifting at a downtown department store.

Sheridan’s family is reeling from the loss of a young woman who was studying business.

They released a statement reflecting on her bright future and the milestones she will never reach.

“What happened to Sheridan cannot be reduced to the idea of someone being in the wrong place at the wrong time,” the family stated.

“This is the loss of a daughter. The loss of a sister. The loss of a future filled with milestones that will now never come.”

Loyola President Mark C. Reed called the event a tragic loss in a letter sent to the student body.

No official charges for the homicide have been filed yet as the investigation continues.

Wyatt Matters

Families deserve safety, accountability, and a justice system that protects ordinary people instead of leaving communities to absorb the consequences.

Original Story