Overview
- Sheridan Gorman, 18, was shot while walking with friends near Tobey Prinz Beach early Thursday, and police arrested Jose Medina-Medina, 25, on first-degree murder and gun charges.
- DHS says the Venezuelan national was stopped by Border Patrol in May 2023 and released, then arrested for a June 2023 shoplifting case in Chicago and later missed court.
- Federal officials have asked Illinois to honor an ICE detainer so he stays in custody, as a Cook County detention hearing was postponed after his hospitalization.
- Republicans, including President Trump, fault Biden’s border approach and Illinois sanctuary policies, while Gov. J.B. Pritzker calls the failings national and Mayor Brandon Johnson stresses illegal gun trafficking and due process.
- Gorman’s family rejects “senseless tragedy” language and demands a clear accounting of each failure, as coverage splits over labels and context, from a Loyola student paper’s apology for using “illegal immigrant” to the Sun-Times noting research that immigrants offend less than U.S.-born residents.