Chicago alderwoman closes office in wrong place at wrong time comments about slain student
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An elderly Chicago woman closed her office for a week after protests over comments that the slain college student was “in the wrong place at the wrong time,” she said about security.
Sheridan Gorman, 18, was killed on March 19 around 01:00 while he was in the Rogers Park area of the city, north of Loyola University Chicago, where the student attends college. The suspect in Gorman’s murder, Jose Medina-Medina, 25, an illegal immigrant from Venezuela, was apprehended by the US Border Patrol on May 9, 2023, and released to the US under the Biden administration, according to the Department of Homeland Security.
After the incident, Alderwoman Maria Hadden in an interview with Fox 32 Chicago, suggested that Gorman was in the wrong place at the wrong time, adding that he may have “scared” the suspect.
In a Facebook post posted on Wednesday, Hadden announced that his office will be closed for the rest of the week due to security concerns.
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Chicago Alderwoman Maria Hadden has been slammed by the internet for her response to Sheridan Gorman’s murder. (End Rise with X/ Sheridan G. Gorman via Instagram)
“My team and I are taking these precautionary measures to ensure our safety and the ability to maintain the level of work you expect from us. I am still working as usual and will be going back to our ward this week,” he wrote.
Hadden apologized for the remark, which he said was “broadcast in the media,” and said his comment was in reference to a question that compared Gorman’s killing to a separate 2018 case.
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Sheridan Gorman smiles next to the skyline of Chicago, Illinois. (Sheridan G. Gorman via Instagram)
“In an effort to portray an absurd situation, I said things that come across as offensive to some people,” said Hadden. “My comments were in no way intended to blame the victim or suggest that Sheridan should not have been out enjoying the park or that it was his fault that he was shot.”
“I sincerely apologize for any additional pain my comments may have caused,” Hadden said. “The fact that some media outlets are deliberately creating noise to misunderstand my words during this tragedy is also unfortunate.”
The Gorman family said in a statement that Sheridan’s body was returned to Yorktown Heights, his hometown, on Tuesday.
“The Gorman family would like to express their deepest gratitude to the Yorktown Police Department and law enforcement agencies that escorted Sheridan home yesterday,” the family said. “What could have been an unbearable journey was done with dignity, respect, and the utmost respect. We are so grateful for the care shown to our daughter and our family during that time.”
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Seridan Gorman was allegedly killed by Jose Medina. (Sheridan G. Gorman via Instagram and DHS)
Medina-Medina was supposed to appear in court on Monday but the hearing was postponed because he was hospitalized due to tuberculosis. A hearing is scheduled for Friday morning. A spokesperson for the Cook County Sheriff’s Office told Fox News Digital on Friday that Medina-Medina is currently in the medical unit of their jail.
Medina-Medina in 2023 was charged with shoplifting after prosecutors say she stole just over $130 worth of merchandise from a Macy’s in downtown Chicago.
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He failed to appear in court for theft, which led to his failure to appear in court. That letter was still in progress when he shot and killed Gorman, according to court records.
A police source previously told Fox News that the shooting was an ambush, adding that the suspect was reportedly wearing a mask or cover-up.
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Sherridan Gorman was killed after being shot in the head while walking with friends at Tobey Prinz Beach, less than a mile from the Illinois campus, around 1 a.m. on Thursday, March 19. (Sheridan G. Gorman via Instagram)
The arrest report obtained by Fox News Digital says that after the incident, Medina-Medina was seen in the video in the lobby of her apartment waiting for the elevator and she was not hiding her face. A civil engineer told police he knew the suspect “who was limping and walking very differently.”
Photos of the suspect were posted on the police website, and US Customs and Border Protection identified the suspect as Medina-Medina. He was arrested at his Rogers Park apartment, according to an arrest report.
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Court documents obtained by Fox News Digital show that Medina-Medina told officials she was living in the Leone Beach Park area of Rogers Park in 2023, which was used as a city-sponsored immigration shelter.
The shelter was slated to close in 2024, according to South Side Weekly.
