TEEN COLLEGE GIRL SHERIDAN GORMAN SHOT DEAD: ILLEGAL VENEZUELAN SUSPECT

Summary

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Crime Stories with Nancy Grace

Episode: TEEN COLLEGE GIRL SHERIDAN GORMAN SHOT DEAD: ILLEGAL VENEZUELAN SUSPECT
Date: March 24, 2026

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Overview

This episode of Crime Stories with Nancy Grace explores the tragic shooting of 18-year-old Loyola University freshman, Sheridan Gorman, during a late-night walk with friends near campus. The investigation centers on an illegal Venezuelan immigrant, Jose Medina Medina, as the prime suspect. Nancy Grace and an expert panel dissect the incident, examine societal and systemic failures, challenge victim-blaming narratives, and discuss the broader implications for community safety and immigration enforcement.

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Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. The Night of the Shooting

[02:36 – 04:26]

• Incident Recap:
  • Sheridan and friends were walking (~0.7 miles from campus) to see the northern lights, a routine, safe outing.
  • "A masked man, this man wearing all black and a ski mask emerges from those bushes in the dark...he pulls out a gun, opens fire at these college students...Sheridan, she's hit." — Sydney Sumner, [03:24]
• Nancy Grace: Highlights the stark contrast between Sheridan’s promising youth and the violence she encountered so close to campus — and how every parent’s sense of security is shattered by cases like these.

2. Panel Discussion: The Psychology and Targeting

[05:15 – 06:59]

• Target Substitution Explained:
  • Dr. Geralyn Utter explains "target substitution," where the victim wasn't pre-selected but happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.
  • The perpetrator "may not have been somebody that was stalked by this particular individual, but in the moment the decision was made that it would be her."
• Lack of Empathy and Grievance:
  • Shooter’s actions are likely rooted in a broader grievance or anger — not personal animosity.

3. Victim-Blaming: Public and Political Reactions

[06:59 – 09:41]

• Reports of a local lawmaker blaming Sheridan for “being in the wrong place at the wrong time” spark heated debate.
  • "I've heard it my whole life, since I started prosecuting. The victim shouldn't have... If it starts with the victim shouldn't have, then I reject it." — Nancy Grace [09:41]
• Panel reiterates: the responsibility lies solely with the perpetrator. College students should be able to walk safely.

4. Who’s to Blame? Systemic and Societal Factors

[11:22 – 14:16]

• Greg Morse (Defense Attorney):
  • Points to failures in campus security, lighting, police presence, university funding, and even free society at large.
  • Also raises the issue of how an undocumented immigrant obtained a firearm.
• Nancy counters:
  • Refuses to let focus drift from the suspect: "You cannot blame the lighting or the police weren't there... You cannot take the focus off him. And you better not pile on and blame the victim." [15:12]

5. Immigration, Prior Crimes, and Law Enforcement Gaps

[17:20 – 21:25]

• Suspect’s History:
  • Jose Medina Medina entered the U.S. in spring 2023, briefly detained by Border Patrol, released, and later arrested for shoplifting before skipping his court date. An active warrant existed at the time of the shooting.
• Nancy Grace:
  • "If you commit a violent crime, you need to go to jail and stay there and not come through the rotating revolving door and get right back out. That goes for illegal immigrants too." [17:50]

6. Forensic and Medical Analysis

[25:38 – 33:56]

• Dr. Thomas Coyne (Medical Examiner):
  • Describes Sheridan’s fatal gunshot wound to the head and the devastating effects of a .40 caliber bullet.
  • Explains how forensic pathologists distinguish entrance and exit wounds, and why 'trajectory path' is vital in corroborating witness accounts and reconstructing events.
  • "When a bullet enters a body...it will have a very well circumscribed entrance wound. The exit wound is often more irregular..." [33:35]
• Emotional Impact on Medical Professionals:
  • Dr. Coyne discusses the emotional toll of autopsying young victims: "I have to turn off my emotions because as a parent myself, it’s hard not to have your heart just break..." [30:02]

7. Law Enforcement Response and Use of Facial Recognition

[39:05 – 47:46]

• Police Investigation:
  • Surveillance footage and facial recognition software (using previous ICE photos) identified and tracked Medina from the scene to his home, enabling arrest and recovery of evidence.
  • "They have footage all the way to the inside of the lobby of the building where he lives...they got that image of his face to later compare for facial recognition." — Sydney Sumner, [47:28]
• Panel critiques: Discussion on whether more proactive use of technology or campus resources could have prevented the crime.

8. Possible Defenses and Panel Rebuttal

[47:46 – 49:50]

• Greg Morse: Floats potential insanity/medical defenses (i.e., impact of tuberculosis on suspect’s mental state).
• Dr. Coyne rebuts:
  • Direct brain involvement from TB would leave a person bedbound, not active/able-bodied as Medina was during the crime.

9. Grief, Blame, and Parental Perspective

[49:50 – 52:29]

• Dr. Geralyn Utter:
  • Advice to Sheridan’s parents: "Take it one minute, one hour, one breath at a time... They just have to do whatever allows them to exist in this moment and to stay together as much as they can." [50:45]
• Nancy Grace shares the Gorman family's statement:
  • “Our beloved daughter Sheridan was taken from us this morning in Chicago. There is no way to soften this. This was murder...She made people feel seen, safe and loved simply by being who she was. We trusted she would be safe. That trust was broken.” [52:29]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Nancy Grace on Victim-Blaming:
  "If it starts with the victim shouldn't have, then I reject it." [09:41]
• Sydney Sumner on Victim Rights:
  "Of course this victim should be able to do whatever she wants to do. This is a grown woman. Her college campus should be a safe place." [08:47]
• Dr. Coyne on Medical Reality:
  "Gunshot wounds of the head are devastating injuries...you would have been knocked unconscious and died almost immediately thereafter." [25:43]
• Parents' Statement (Read by Nancy):
  "Our beloved daughter Sheridan was taken from us this morning in Chicago. There is no way to soften this. This was murder...We trusted she would be safe. That trust was broken." [52:29]
• Greg Morse debating blame:
  "You want to stop these things from happening...simple things in society...just aren't being addressed." [35:06]

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Important Timestamps for Key Segments

• [02:36–03:24] – The moment of the shooting/incident report
• [05:15–06:59] – Psychological context: Target substitution
• [09:41] – Nancy’s stand on victim-blaming
• [17:20–19:45] – Suspect’s immigration/criminal history
• [25:43–27:34] – Medical details about Sheridan’s injuries
• [39:05–44:26] – Law enforcement, technology, and suspect ID
• [50:45–52:29] – Grief counseling and Gorman family statement

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Tone and Language

• The episode remains direct, emotional, and urgent, reflecting Nancy Grace’s prosecutorial style and personal investment in justice for victims.
• The debate is robust, with frequent challenges between host and panel, reflecting tensions over systemic blame, victim responsibility, and legal strategies.

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Final Thoughts

• The killing of Sheridan Gorman is examined not just as a standalone tragedy, but as emblematic of failures in security, justice, and societal attitudes.
• The panel agrees: Sheridan bears no blame. The fault lies with her killer, and systemic improvements must prevent more such tragedies.
• Listeners are reminded: Anyone with information is urged to call the police tip-line at 312-744-8263.

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For listeners seeking insight, emotion, and a comprehensive breakdown—this episode exemplifies Nancy Grace's relentless pursuit of justice, refusal to tolerate victim-blaming, and compassionate acknowledgment of victim families' pain.

Transcript

[Nancy Grace]

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[Nancy Grace]

Crime Stories with Nancy Grace. A gorgeous young teen college girl and 18 year old co ed Sheridan Gorman is shot dead on a stroll with friends executed in cold blood tonight and an illegal Venezuelan immigrant prime suspect. I'm Nancy Grace. This is Crime Stories. I want to thank you for being with us.

[Picks 11 ABC Reporter]

18 year old freshman Sheridan Gorman was a bright rising star at Loyola University Chicago until in a single moment, everything changed.

[Nancy Grace]

What happened to this beautiful young co ed joining us at all star panel? But first I want you to hear the police dispatch from that shooting incident. Listen, we got shot fired. It was a nail in a ski mask wearing all black. Any unit on Lighthouse, do you guys have anyone in custody? There is no one in custody at this time, right? Negative. We're working for male wearing an all ski mask. Straight out to Sydney Sumner, crime stories investigative reporter. Sydney, lead me up to the moment that shots rang out.

[Sydney Sumner]

This was a Thursday night like any other for Sheridan Gorman and her newfound friends at Loyola University. The group decides, hey, we might be able to see the northern lights tonight. Let's go walk out to the beach and see if we can get some photos of the lights over the skyline of the city. So this group takes a 0.7 mile walk. They're four minutes from campus when they reach the pier where they want to take these photos. And Sheridan notices something going on behind some bushes. She kind of points it out to her friends and a masked man, this man wearing all black and a ski mask emerges from those bushes in the dark. And as they, they kind of back off from the sky, he pulls out a gun, opens fire at these college students who just stumbled upon him in Sheridan. She's hit.

[Nancy Grace]

You know the dichotomy of just starting your life out, being a college student with so many possibilities before you. She's 18 years old, going to college, scrubbed in sunshine. The parents dream come true. They work their whole life, all their time, all their effort, all their money they pour into her to get her to college. Maybe I'm projecting Sydney because my children are about to go away to college. They think, oh, we did it, we made it, she's going to be fine. Then she walks. Did you say 0.7 miles? Not even a mile, not even a 15 minute walk, for Pete's sake.

[Sydney Sumner]

Four minutes from the edge of Loyola campus.

[Nancy Grace]

The dichotomy is very unsettling. Straight out to Dr. Geralyn Utter. She is clinical psychologist specializing in psychological evaluations and risk assessments. Author of Mainlining Philly Survival, Resisting Drug Addiction. And she is the producer and star of Utter nonsense, a documentary. Dr. Jerilyn, thank you for being with us. What is it? It's just such a stark comparison to her life. Just really getting started at age 18 and then being struck down doing something as innocent as Going on a walk with her friends to see the northern lights.

[Dr. Geralyn Utter]

Yeah. With something like this, Nancy, a lot of questions that's probably going through folks head is why her? This 18 year old girl, she's beautiful. She's away at her, you know, first year of college. And when we look at something like this, we look at psychologically a concept called target substitution. So what that means is she may not have been somebody that was stalked by this particular individual, but in the moment the decision was made that it would be her. So though the intent initially may not have been her or that she was being stalked, it was definitely something that was planned in that moment that he made the decision that of those other folks that she was the one that was potentially going to be targeted. So we call that target substitution. And from the perpetrator's perspective, it usually comes from a place of, you know, no empathy, grievance, control, anger. He's angry about something, though it may not be her specifically, it may be something that she represents. And he wanted to basically, you know, institute a lot of pain and suffering for other folks.

[Nancy Grace]

You know, I'm looking at a graduation photo of the victim and she is wearing honor braids around her neck. When I said scrubbed in sunshine, I really meant it. And another thing I don't understand, Sidney Sumner. Apparently a Chicago lawmaker blamed the victim after saying this teen girl was killed, her words, not mine, by a quote, illegal immigrant was in the wrong place. She, she, her, the victim was in the wrong place at the wrong time and she startled her. Her attacker suggesting Sheridan was shot dead there on the lakefront because she was in the wrong place the wrong time, and startle Jose Medina Medina, a Venezuelan man. So do I have that right? Did the female lawmaker actually say it's her fault because she startled him?

[Sydney Sumner]

I don't think that was the intent behind the comment, Nancy. But yes, they are saying that Sheridan maybe should not have been out that late at night. But this is a college student. Okay, this is time.

[Nancy Grace]

Hold on, let me understand what a Crime Stories investigator just said. A lawmaker blurted something out but quote, didn't really mean it. You, Sydney Sumner, can divine what she really meant. And you're saying but that she meant that she shouldn't have been out that night. That that's your explanation? So the victim shouldn't have been out?

[Sydney Sumner]

Of course not, Nancy. Of course this victim should be able to do whatever she wants to do. This is a grown woman. Her college campus should be a safe place. Chicago should be a safe place for a Woman to be out with a group of friends 10 minutes from her dorm, 4 minutes from her dorm, to take photos of the northern lights, to enjoy the city skyline. So, of course, Sheridan Gorman did nothing wrong by being out with her friends. Her stumbling upon this man should not be a reason that she's now dead, that her life is now extinguished. Of course that should not be the case. And this Alder woman did make a comment. Yes, this young teen girl was unfortunately a victim of a wrong place, wrong time murder. Something that never.

[Nancy Grace]

Okay, you know, that's something I'm not understanding. And to me, you're digging your own hole, your grave with your teeth right now. Because there's no way to clarify what this lawmaker, and I'm using that in a loose sense of the word, said. So if you're saying, sydney, she didn't mean what she said. I watched the clip. That's not how she meant it. What she meant was she shouldn't have been out at night. Well, that's just as bad. I've heard that my whole life, since I started prosecuting. The victim shouldn't have been at a bar. Why the victim shouldn't have worn a short skirt. Why the victim shouldn't have jogged. Why I've heard it and heard it and heard it. If it starts with the victim shouldn't have, then I reject it. This girl, and she is a girl, she is 18 years old, was out on a stroll with her friend girls to see the northern lights. There she is in her honor grad outfit, and she is gunned down. And it will be a cold day in he double L that I buy that. The shooter was, quote, startled. He had dressed in all black. He was wearing a ski mask to cover his face. He came to the location with a gun. Straight out to Greg Morse joining me, veteran defense attorney. He is the founder of Morse Legal and author of the Untested. Greg. So when was the last time you went for a walk wearing a ski mask and carrying a gun? Let's just start right there.

[Greg Morse]

That's never happened before. Ski mask when I'm in a cold weather place, but never like Palm Beach. Okay, you know, this is the issue. Like the lawmaker. What's problematic and troubling is the lawmaker's statement should have been, we failed this girl because we don't put any resources into security. This park should have had security. This park should have had better lighting. You can have all the technology you want in law enforcement, but you need police officers on the ground walking around. That's what stops crime. Lighting stops crime. It doesn't give people places to hide. And that's the reason why these things are going to continue to happen in places like, I guess, Chicago, because they have lawmakers that are blaming victims for doing what every single person does, goes out at night, especially young people. And this was, right, a very nice thing to do. It wasn't partying. It wasn't anything. It was going to the park. And I imagine Loyola is a very expensive university. And the fact that there's no security at this park from the campus is tragic. And parents should be demanding more from the university. This easily could have been avoided by simple security measures that the school, I have no doubt, has plenty of money to put in place. So it's one of the unfortunate things that people can become victims anywhere in our society, especially a free society. And what's not being talked about, Nancy, which is important, how did this undocumented immigrant get the gun? Who gave the gun? Where'd the gun come from? There's been no talk of that at all. That's an important aspect to this, that someone who legally cannot buy a firearm bought one and killed a young lady who had all the promise in the world.

[Nancy Grace]

Okay, you know what? I had to write so quickly, I can't even read my own writing. All the people you blamed just then. I was 3 inches up Sydney Summers tailpipe trying to defend that councilwoman blaming the victim. But this is who you blame. Start counting. You're going to need both hands. Jamie, start counting. One, the lawmakers. Two. The park. It was the Chicago parks fault. Three, the lighting. They needed better lighting for the police officer. Should have been there. Where were all the police officers? That's what, four, five? Campus security is their fault. They were not there by the lake. It's the university's fault. What is that? I'm up to six. Six. It's the university's fault. Oh, then you blame fate. Well, fate.

[Greg Morse]

Well, you want to. You want to stop these things from happening.

[Nancy Grace]

Then you blamed our free society, that it's, I guess, the American way. It's our fault because we're not in Communist China in lockdown. Oh, and wait, who gave him the gun? It's their fault.

[Greg Morse]

Well, we want to stop these things

[Nancy Grace]

from happening because the outcome is Medina Medina's fault. Oh, wait, I've got another one. Why he blows somebody else back at me. Why am I hearing him? I thought I said got his mic, but I'm still hearing him. How did he. Did you. Did he say, how did he get back in the country? Why was he. Why was he here? I guess he's blaming ins. Okay, I'm not sure about that because I was writing so quickly. Sydney Sumner, you're off probation for a few moments. Isn't it true that the perp was dressed. This is a yes, no, by the way. All in black.

[Sydney Sumner]

All in black.

[Nancy Grace]

Ski mask?

[Sydney Sumner]

Correct.

[Nancy Grace]

Gun? Correct. Hiding in bushes. Jumped out on a bunch of girls.

[Sydney Sumner]

I am not sure the composition of the friend group. I don't know if it's Sheridan and four other girls. I know it was Sheridan and four other friends.

[Nancy Grace]

Thank you, Sydney, for that subtle yet important distinction. Okay, Greg Morse. There is no way you can blame anybody except Medina. Medina? He's the one clad in black, wearing a ski mask with a gun. You cannot blame the lighting or the police weren't there, or the campus security. You cannot take the focus off him. And you better not pile on and blame the victim.

[Greg Morse]

Well, it's not. No, it's just a simple fact that, you know, as a society, you want to create things and situations. So this can't happen or limit happening. It can happen anywhere. Of course. We're a free society and Medina is the guy that's responsible for this. At least according to law enforcement. Right now, that's who they arrested. But when we look at the situation, there are situations all over America. There's simple things that could be done that can, you know, maybe avoid this from happening. You know, I don't. I don't. I live in Florida. I practice law. I don't live in a state where, you know, this happens. But there's a different view when it comes to ice.

[Nancy Grace]

Are you telling me murders don't happen in Florida?

[Greg Morse]

I said they do have you crime rate in Orlando. I'm a criminal defense lawyer that handles these cases. Yes, we have a lot of them here in Florida.

[Nancy Grace]

And I blame. I blame the drug trade out of Florida for a lot of crime in Atlanta, because the dopers come straight up. I75. First major pit stop, Atlanta. Let's have a turf war. So I don't know what you're saying. There's no murder in Florida.

[Greg Morse]

No, there's plenty of crime that go in Florida. I was referencing the fact that when we have things here that happened, the government tries to correct the situation so it doesn't happen again. You can't stop this young lady. She was unfortunately killed. So what do we do to try to avoid this? And when you read about the situation, there's some pretty simple things that may have saved this.

[Nancy Grace]

You can't let violent felons come back in the country. You know, we can start with, well,

[Greg Morse]

he had a petty theft.

[Nancy Grace]

Why single them out?

[Greg Morse]

Well, he had a petty theft charge in America.

[Nancy Grace]

Why kill felons behind bars instead of letting them rotate out like their graduation at kindergarten? Just keep on walking. Keep on walking.

[Greg Morse]

Native born Americans commit more crime than undocumented immigrants. By a rate of over 50%, native born Americans commit more crime than any resident of any other country.

[Nancy Grace]

Let me be really clear for Greg Morse and everyone. I don't care if you're an illegal immigrant or if your great, great, great, great grandpa came over on the Mayflower. If you commit a violent fine. If you commit a violent crime, you need to go to jail and stay there and not come through the rotating revolving door and get right back out. That goes for illegal immigrants too. Why is he here? To Sydney Sumner joining us. Sydney, explain to me, who is this guy? Why is he here?

[Sydney Sumner]

Jose Medina is from Venezuela and he first arrived in the US in the spring of 2023. From there we know he was briefly detained by Border Patrol, then released into the country and he winds up in Chicago. And just a few months after first entering the United States, Medina robs a Macy's store on State Street. About $132 was the charge.

[Nancy Grace]

Well, wait a minute, I thought it was shoplifting.

[Sydney Sumner]

Shoplifting, correct. He stole from a Macy's store.

[Nancy Grace]

Okay, because robbery is when you take something from a person, whether you're armed. That would be armed robbery or simple robbery, as you just mentioned, where you take something away from an individual, not to be confused with burglary. When you enter a premises to commit a felony, that felony could be vandalism, it could be murder, it could be rape, it could be theft. That's an assault on the premises as opposed to shoplifting where you just swipe something out of a store. But you were saying he had been here not even a year before he's busted on shoplifting.

[Sydney Sumner]

Yes. So arrives in May 2023, September 2023, hit with that shoplifting charge for lifting items from a Macy's store. About $132 worth of merchandise stolen. And Medina, of course, is released on bail and. And he never returns to court. There was an active arrest warrant for Medina at the time of Sheridan's shooting.

[Nancy Grace]

Guys, this is bringing up the specter of so many other young girls and young women attacked by illegal immigrants with a violent past. I am not, and let me be clear, referring to immigrants that have helped make our nation. Great. My family came from immigrants, poor Irish coming to America for a new start. I am referring to felons that enter our country and are allowed to stay here. Again, this is not about politics. Greg Morse would love to drive me down the path of arguing. What difference does it make if it is an illegal immigrant or it's someone born a born and bred USA killer? It doesn't. But this begs the question of why is he here? What was his record in Venezuela? I know this. This girl is dead. This girl is dead because according to police, an illegal immigrant that should not have been here shot her dead.

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[Dr. Thomas Coyne]

until I heard the police sirens come and I got out of bed and I just heard the screaming. They were saying come help us. We're over here.

[Maria Haddon]

Ms. Sheridan Gorman was kind of just the first in the group and the person they ran into shot her. So one shot and killed her. Her just, just tragic. The other students ran, the shooter fled.

[WGN Reporter]

Her and four friends were literally a four minute walk from campus. So it's not like they were out looking for trouble or during one of the safest areas of Chicago from what

[Nancy Grace]

I understand from our friends. Picks 11 ABC and NBC early Thursday

[Picks 11 ABC Reporter]

morning, Sheridan and her friends went out hoping to catch a glimpse of the northern lights. Unaware of the danger ahead.

[WGN Reporter]

They saw this person coming over, they all got up and started to walk away and he just opened fire and unfortunately you know, Sheridan was hit and we lost her immediately.

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[Nancy Grace]

Crime Stories with Nancy Grace.

[Maria Haddon]

People come out here after dark. Weather's milder. We see that more as the spring and summer comes along. You know, they were kind of down at the end of the pier. Seems they stumbled onto someone.

[Nancy Grace]

They quote, stumbled onto someone. That's not what happened. He jumped out of the bushes armed. That's my friends at picks 11 and ABC. That is older woman Maria Haddon speaking from the Chicago 49th Ward. Straight out to special guest joining us, Dr. Thomas Coyne. He is the Chief Medical Examiner, District 2 Medical Examiner's Office in Florida, where according to Morse, they don't have any murders. A forensic pathologist, toxicologist, neuropathologist. Dr. Coyne, thank you for being with us.

[Dr. Thomas Coyne]

Thank you. Thank you for having me.

[Nancy Grace]

What did Sheridan experience that night?

[Dr. Thomas Coyne]

Well, unfortunately, she died of a gunshot wound to the head. And so the second that bullet would have impacted her skull, she would have been knocked unconscious and she would have died almost immediately thereafter. Gunshot wounds of the head are devastating injuries. Most of these wounds are from nine millimeter handguns. And the velocity at which the bullet exits and the force it carries produces devastating injuries to the brain. And you and I are sitting here awake. We're not even Thinking about having to breathe in and breathe out, those structures in our brain often are injured immediately after being shot in the head. And so a person stops breathing, loses consciousness, and dies soon thereafter. Devastating wound.

[Nancy Grace]

Dr. Coyne, we understand that a.40 caliber bullet killed her. What is the difference in, say, a.40 caliber and a 9 versus a.22? What would be the difference?

[Dr. Thomas Coyne]

Bigger. And it packs much greater force, greater force than a.22 caliber handgun. And so a wound to the head from a.40 caliber handgun is devastating. In other words, the skull itself, when the bullet impacts, the skull would fracture as the bullet travels through the brain. Not only does it is a bullet destructive directly to the brain, but the force of the bullet creates a pressure wave around the bullet which devastates brain structures that are even further away from the bullet itself. And so a person often has severe skull fractures and devastating brain injuries throughout the entirety of, not just where the bullet travels. So even a bullet that may graze the head or graze the brain can still be fatal just because of the force that bullet brings with it.

[Nancy Grace]

Now, you were describing a.40 caliber, but could you compare it to a.22 caliber specifically?

[Dr. Thomas Coyne]

Sure.22 calibers. So I've had people who've attempted to commit suicide by placing a.22 caliber handgun against the head. And depending upon where that gun is placed, the skull itself may be thick enough to slow down the.22 caliber bullet, where either stops in the skull or isn't as devastating, let's say, as a 40 caliber or 9 millimeter projectile that will travel through the brain, often producing extensive skull fractures. And so the.22 caliber from a handgun in particular tends to have less force, can still be devastating, especially, you know, it strikes vital structures, can have fatal consequences or profound neurologic injuries, but tends to not have as much force as a 9 millimeter or.40 caliber.

[Nancy Grace]

What's the differential between a.22 and a.40

[Dr. Thomas Coyne]

caliber in terms of gr. Well, the, the weight of it, you know, you're probably a.40 caliber. You're looking at, you know, above 100 grains.22 caliber below. But, you know, in terms of the measurement, I'd have to show you, you know, in terms of centimeter measurement, but it's a smaller, smaller projectile itself. And also, you know, the actual gunpowder that is packed with so that, so that it produces less force when it's fired. So the, the projectile itself is smaller and travels with a lower velocity than a 40 caliber or 9 millimeter. Therefore, the force, you know, mass and speed are going to be mass and velocity are going to be less,

[Nancy Grace]

you know? Dr. Thomas Cohen, I know you're looking at your monitor and seeing photos of Sheridan. It's hard for me, difficult for me sometimes, to discuss the facts, the trajectory path of a bullet, the angle, and look at the victim in life and reconcile that she is nothing now but a dead body on a slab to be autopsied, where you figure out the trajectory path and what the bullet did to her brain. Do you ever allow yourself to think about that when you are conducting an autopsy, such as on a young girl like this?

[Dr. Thomas Coyne]

I try not to. I have a son who's graduating high school and about to go off to college. And so when I see victims that age, I have to turn off my emotions because as a parent myself, it's hard not to have your heart just break, you know, when you walk into the morgue and you see that body lying on the table. But I know that I'm doing my best to hopefully bring justice for her. And so I know that my job is to go in there and figure out exactly what happened, try to provide evidence I can give the law enforcement, hopefully bring her killer to justice. And so I have to focus on those things and try to turn off those emotions, because if I let those emotions creep in, I couldn't do my job.

[Nancy Grace]

Same, same. I would find it very difficult at times to move forward in a felony trial when I was looking at the victim's family on the front row or using photos of the victim. When you determine trajectory path, which is very important in proving a case, how it happened. Because, look, I fight a lot with Greg Morse. That's because we're on two different sides. But what he is saying is what a defense attorney say, if they're a good one at trial, okay, now, they will use, as is allowed under the Constitution, they will use any tidbit of information to change the scenario, put out a different possibility, such as, hey, wait a minute. Look at this trajectory path. Maybe she attacked him. I mean, I don't know. It's ridiculous, right? But it happens. So that is why you, the medical examiner, must keep a clear head and determine everything you can from the body. How do you go about determining, for instance, because it will come into play, the trajectory path of the bullet that seared through her head. How do you do that? And I want you to be specific.

[Dr. Thomas Coyne]

Well, there are several things I can tell about a gunshot wound in the body. Mind you, the body's laying flat on the autopsy table. So based upon the physical characteristics of the wounds, I can Tell you what is an entrance wound, what is an exit, and then I can sometimes give you range of fire. So as a bullet leaves a gun, with the bullet comes gas, comes spent gunpowder particles, and those will strike the skin if the handgun is within three feet of the body. So if there are marks of close range fire, I can tell law enforcement that I see that on the body. Then of course, I can track where the bullet goes through the body from how it enters.

[Nancy Grace]

Hold on, hold on, hold on, hold on. Did you think you could just blurt out things like, I determined entry and exit and we're going to be happy with that? No, we're not happy with that. Explain how you determine what is the entry and what is the exit.

[Dr. Thomas Coyne]

Physical characteristics of the wound itself. So when a bullet comes out of a gun, you know, the rifling of the gun, whether it's a rifle or a handgun, imparts the spin upon the bullet. So oftentimes when a bullet enters a body without striking another target first, it will have a very well circumscribed entrance wound. And then as it travels through the body, smooth.

[Nancy Grace]

Hey, Coin, you're brilliant. We all know you're brilliant. Are you saying in regular people talk, the entry is typically smooth and the exit is ragged?

[Dr. Thomas Coyne]

Yeah, well, circumscribed. Yeah, exactly. So, and then when a bullet hits tissue, it wobbles and has an irregular path through the body. So the exit wound is often more irregular and as it comes out, it'll pull tissue with it. So there's characteristics that you can see in bone and tissue that allow me to say which way a bullet traveled through the body.

[Nancy Grace]

Okay, hold on just a second. I want to follow up on what you're saying. Dr. Coyne, Greg Morse. I want you to look at this girl. Look at Sheridan on your monitor, Greg. Right now we're talking about the smooth, which to me is diabolical to refer to a bullet entering your head as a smooth entry. But that's how it looks on the outside of most. Most bullet wound entries. But think of punching a paper bag when you come out the other side. Out comes her tissue, her brain matter, her blood. The flesh comes outward. We're talking about an 18 year old girl. My little girl, Lucy, and my son, John David. 18. And now her parents have to deal with the entry and the exit wound in her head. And you actually tried to blame the park, the lighting, the police officer, campus security, the university. Fate. Free society, really.

[Greg Morse]

Well, it's not a matter of blame. It's a matter of simple things that may have avoided this. That's all. Because the immigration isn't why this happened. These are simple things in society that time after time again just aren't being addressed. And you know, again, you're at an expensive university, a common college place, and there's no one around. There's no one for a student to call for help. There's no one to do anything. And you're right.

[Nancy Grace]

Listen, I'm sorry, Greg. Why would she need to call for help? Oh, that's right. Because a guy jumped out in a ski mask with a gun. Okay, I see you're not giving up. You're going to go down with the ship.

[Greg Morse]

Well, Nancy, one thing that's interesting is they matched apparently Medina with facial recognition software and photos from ISIS file. So it's interesting that this person's going around with arrest warrants. They obviously have facial recognition software in this community, but it did nothing for that. Could have maybe stopped it before it got too violent. That's my only point. So you know.

[Nancy Grace]

Okay, Jamie, please cut his mic. Jamie, could you please add ice? It's ice's problem and facial recognition, because they did not go out and find him there hiding in the bushes in his ski mask. Dr. Thomas Coyne, another question. When I refer to trajectory path, what is that? And why is it significant when proving a criminal case? I mean, to me it's significant.

[Dr. Thomas Coyne]

So from the autopsy, I can tell you where a bullet passes through the body. So whether it entered in the back or the front or the left or the right side, if it traveled upward or downward. And you can piece that information together with information on scene to try to figure out where a shooter may have been standing at the time the gun was fired. So it allows you to somehow, when

[Nancy Grace]

this really came to the forefront. Dr. Coyne, do you remember you and I analyzing the testimony at the Alex Murdoch trial? Because the defense was trying to claim that because of the trajectory path, the angle that the bullet entered Maggie's body and exited, that the killer must have been really, really short, something crazy like that. And Murdoch is six foot something. Well, there's so many ways to explain the trajectory path. For instance, the killer could have been standing above the perp, above the victim. The victim could have already been down on the ground. It depends on the angle. For all I know. It just. There's so many variables. But if you have that other evidence you were talking about, the corroborating evidence, such as an eyewitness, the trajectory path can then corroborate what the Eyewitness says explain.

[Dr. Thomas Coyne]

Sure. So, I mean, if an eyewitness says they saw the shooter standing behind the person who was shot, firing the weapon, and I'm doing the autopsy and I show that the bullet entered the back of the head, you know, traveled back to front with a slight, you know, left to right trajectory, you can piece that together with the eyewitness account of where they say the shooter was standing. And therefore, it helps corroborate those pieces of evidence.

[WGN Reporter]

Such a great soul, a warm soul, would do anything for you.

[Nancy Grace]

Just like the family from wgn.

[Picks 11 ABC Reporter]

Without warning, a masked man stepped out of the shadows, armed with a gun and moving toward the group.

[Nancy Grace]

Joining us now tonight, Dan Corcentino, former police chief, former sheriff, US Homeland Security, senior advisor, private investigator at Dancors. Dan Corcentino, I'd like you to weigh in on Greg Morse blaming facial recognition not being used to apprehend Medina Medina earlier.

[Dan Corcentino]

Well, first of all, I want to lay a foundation. Jose Medina Medina is a criminal, and he came into this country illegally, and he committed acts which at one point can be deemed to be misdemeanors, but he escalated up to this horrific crime of murder. Simply put, he's a criminal. Second, the Chicago PD in this case took it and were very, very comprehensive in working with U.S. customs and Border Control because they took the information they had from the eyewitness, they took the information after they matched the.40 caliber shell casings, and they then had everything in play to present to U.S. customs and Border Control, which then ran facial recognition. Immigration had this individual, Medina Medina in the system, and clearly they brought back what was a positive identification of Medina Medina as the perpetrator in this horrific crime.

[Nancy Grace]

How would facial recognition have helped if they couldn't find him? Dan?

[Dan Corcentino]

Well, first of all, facial recognition creates really a unique digital template which is compared in a database, and it stored and matched against other faces. Hence those individuals with ICE that were coming across the border that they stopped for whatever reason, perhaps a previous crime, they went into the database, and then the AI, artificial intelligence IDs that facial recognition template. And what they really do is they measure the distances between the eyes, nose shapes, jaw lines, and they come up with what would appear to be a mathematical representation. If they did not have that, they would have had to rely on the forensics of the weapon, possibly the DNA off of the gun, and or really, really dug a little bit deeper to try and identify any other video CCTV surveillance that they had in this case. So it would have been very difficult without the facial recognition.

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[Nancy Grace]

Sydney Sumner we heard Greg Morse blaming the police and campus security and the university and bleh. But how is it, thanks to the police that Medina Medina was actually apprehended?

[Sydney Sumner]

Well, in conjunction with that facial recognition software, there was lots of Surveillance footage that captured him before and after the shooting. And that footage tracked Medina all the way to his home. That's where he took that ski mask off, where that facial recognition came into play. So led him straight to where he lived. Were able to recognize him off of previous ICE photos. And when they went in for the arrest, both the gun, the clothing and the ski mask that was worn and used during the commission of the shooting was recovered from Medina's home.

[Nancy Grace]

So what about that Greg Morse? I guess you're going to say the police planted it.

[Greg Morse]

No, I mean, you know, the one thing that. What? I don't know. It seems like the descriptions were somebody with a limp, walking with a limp in all black. So that's pretty generic stuff to get a search warrant on or something like that. But, you know, it's too early to tell what the finer points of the investigation led to, what the probable cause was to get any warrants, how the facial recognition plays in to this. But, you know, this is my point. You know, whether it's facial recognition, license plate readers, law enforcement has a lot of tools to piece together what happened with these technologies from point of crime, backwards and forwards of the parties involved. And unfortunately, you know, it came too late for this young lady. And that's all. My point is, you know, we should try to prohibit use these technologies to stop this instead of reacting to it like we do in America.

[Nancy Grace]

So, okay, so stop the shooting before it happens. Okay. Note to self, Sidney Sumner. Yeah, we just hear Greg Morse and it's, it's important we listen to what he's saying, because what he's saying may very well be used as a defense at trial. So what you do as a prosecutor, you prepare your own case, and then you anticipate what the other side is going to do and shoot it down before it becomes a problem. For instance, did police law enforcement have PC probable cause to enter Medina Medina's home? Because if they didn't, the ski mask, all the other evidence will be thrown out of trial because of Fruit of the Poisonous Tree, a warrantless search without PC is disallowed. And all of the fruit of that search, the evidence also disallowed. So isn't it true that they saw him on various surveillance cameras leaving the scene running same outfit. They tracked him to his home, and that is where he's caught. Taking the mask, the mask off. And we see his face.

[Sydney Sumner]

Yes, that's absolutely correct. They have footage all the way to the inside of the lobby of the building where he lives. And that's where Medina stops, rips off the mask, and they got that image of his face to later compare for facial recognition.

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[Nancy Grace]

Greg Morse. Who should I believe, you or my lion eyes?

[Greg Morse]

Well, you know, there's other aspects that could come about in a case as a defense. Like, I note this. Medina's in the hospital for tuberculosis. One of the side effects of tuberculosis is it could affect your mental state. Maybe there's some element to this situation that involves that. Well, again, when you're as you know, if your mental state is not, you don't know right from wrong because your mental state is you're mentally insane, whether temporarily or permanently, that's a defense. So, you know, there are aspects, but you're amazing.

[Nancy Grace]

You are. It's Dr. Thomas Coyne. Do you know of a known link between tuberculosis and insanity?

[Dr. Thomas Coyne]

Well, the only way, usually it can cause that is if you are encephalopathic from either severe disease or if you have spread actually into the brain. But, you know, I would argue, you know, the directed behavior of putting on an actual ski mask and going out and committing a crime shows that you're able to put two thoughts together as opposed to just being crazy or acting in an encephalopathic state. What do I know?

[Nancy Grace]

Now, hold on, Dr. Coyne. When you throw around phrases like encephalactic, you mean encephalitis, which is, I think, swelling of the brain due to some sort of inflammation. And if you were that sick, would you really be running along the lakeside with a gun and a ski mask? Wouldn't you be in the hospital connected to some machine?

[Dr. Thomas Coyne]

Yeah. If you have direct involvement with that, Morse, you're gonna have severe brain.

[Nancy Grace]

It never ends with this guy. What did you say, Dr. Coyne? I'm sorry?

[Dr. Thomas Coyne]

I said if you have direct involvement of the brain with tuberculosis, you're going to have pretty significant brain swelling, which tends to put a person bedbound rather than acting in a crazy like state. It depends upon not to get specific, but where the disease is involving the brain, but generally not associated with tuberculosis.

[Nancy Grace]

And Dr. Cohen, we're giving that defense way too much attention. But you know what? Actually, you're right, because, you know, you get one crazy juror that might buy into the encephalitis, tuberculosis, mental insanity thing. Dr. Gerald Utter joining us. Dr. Utter, the parents are, of course, bereft, and they're somewhat blaming the school that the school didn't have safety precautions. I think they're coming from a place of extreme pain. Extreme pain. What is your message? How? I thought I knew it all about grief when my fiance was murdered, but now that I have the twins, I can't imagine what these parents are going through. What is your advice to them, Doctor?

[Dr. Geralyn Utter]

Take it one minute, one hour, one breath at a time. It feels. You know, what we want to do is we want to not blame, but we want to find a way to make it better for maybe other students. So if they're. If they're pointing their attention to the university, that's an outlet of grief. It may also be a way to activate them to say, I don't want this to happen to anybody else. I don't want my daughter's life to have been in vain, like her life taken in vain. I want to kind of make sure I can create something, a legacy, something to change for the good, to protect other kids. I can't even imagine. There's no textbook answer, Nancy. There's no. There's nothing that I can say. Hey, why don't you do this? Because it'll help you. I think they just have to surround themselves with people who love and support them. They have to take it one breath, one second, one minute, one hour, one day at a time. And they have to do what feels good for them. So down the road, if they want to participate in a bereavement group of other parents or who have lost their children, if they want to engage in psychotherapy separately, not necessarily together, mom and dad can do it separately and then together. But again, I think the key message is we're in survival mode right now. They just have to do what feels good for them. And when I say good, I mean that just allows them to take the next breath. That allows them to hydrate, get something to eat. They just have to do whatever allows them to exist in this moment and to stay together as much as they can. Because we can't. We can't say or monetize or. Or figure out what's going to make them feel better. We just have to be there for them. And they have to surround themselves with people who love them.

[Nancy Grace]

The parents, Thomas and Jessica Gorman, have flown to Chicago to collect their daughter's body. They gave a statement. Our beloved daughter Sheridan was taken from us this morning in Chicago. There is no way to soften this. This was murder. Sheridan was the light of our lives. She made people feel seen, safe and loved. Simply by being who she was, we trusted she would be safe. That trust was broken. They are demanding answers. And also I hear where they're coming from. Why was this guy still in the us why was he here to start with, if the school knew that students typically go on this walk. Not to give any credence to Greg Morse, but a broken clock is right twice a day. If they knew students frequently take this walk, why wasn't there campus security? He is right. The university has tons of money. There's so many avenues to explore. But this is murder and her parents are grieving. If you know or think you know anything about Sheridan's murder, please dial 312-744-8263. Repeat, 312-744-8263. Nancy Grace signing off. Goodbye.

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[Nancy Grace]

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