The mother of Sheridan Gorman sharply criticized Democratic lawmakers who support sanctuary city policies Thursday, accusing several members of displaying dismissive behavior during a recent congressional hearing where she testified about her daughter’s death.
Jessica Anne Gorman spoke about the March 2026 death of her 18-year-old daughter, a Loyola University Chicago student, at a Washington, D.C., gathering honoring victims of violent crime. Attorney General Todd Blanche, FBI Director Kash Patel, border czar Tom Homan and drug czar Sara Carter were among the senior Justice Department and administration officials attending the event.
Sheridan Gorman was shot and killed while visiting friends near a pier and lighthouse in Chicago. Jose Medina, a Venezuelan national who entered the United States illegally and was previously released following a Chicago shoplifting arrest, has been charged in connection with her murder.
Jessica Gorman, the mother of slain college student Sheridan Gorman, criticized Democratic lawmakers after her 18-year-old daughter was allegedly murdered by an illegal immigrant in Chicago. (Fox News and Sheridan Gorman/Instagram)
In her remarks, Jessica Gorman condemned Democratic lawmakers who support policies that shield immigrants in the country illegally from federal immigration enforcement.
She described testifying at a House hearing on sanctuary policies and said she could hear lawmakers laughing as she spoke about the loss of her daughter.
“And I thought to myself, ‘Boy, the hits just keep on coming,’” Jessica Gorman said Thursday.
A woman holds a sign reading, “Sanctuary policy set my daughter’s perpetrator free, explain that,” during a House Judiciary Committee hearing March 4 in the Rayburn House Office Building in Washington, D.C. (Heather Diehl/Getty Images/File)
Gorman specifically criticized Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., who said during the hearing that it was the fourth session of its kind and that lawmakers had “many other things we could be doing.”
“We were all insulted by Democrat Representative Jayapal telling me — literally telling me — and all the other angel families in the room … with disdain on her face, that there’s other things they could be doing except listening to four sessions,” Jessica Gorman said.
Gorman’s mother criticized Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., during a meeting Sept. 24, 2026. (Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images/)
“They give us five minutes to tell our daughter’s story,” Jessica Gorman added. “Our dead children’s story. She listened to four before mine. She didn’t want to listen to another. And, honestly, I think she should listen to everyone in this room.”
Gorman also accused Rep. Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., of sleeping during the proceedings.
Stephen Federico, whose son Logan was killed while visiting friends at the University of South Carolina, also spoke at the gathering. He expressed deep frustration with the broader criminal justice system.
Alexander Dickey, 30, a career criminal with dozens of prior arrests, is accused of shooting and killing Logan Federico during a home break-in.
“My daughter wasn’t killed by an illegal alien,” Stephen Federico said. “She was killed by a home-grown American career criminal that we arrested 39 damn times. And he was on the street. Tell me that makes sense.”
“Can anyone tell me, please, how a felon like that is left on the street?” he added. “It’s from fingerprint problems. It’s from process problems. It’s from weak judges. It’s from weak prosecutors.”
News Media has reached out to Jayapal’s office for comment.