Victim of Tobey Prinz Beach Incident Identified as 18-Year-Old Sheridan Gorman

She had gone to a place students know well, a stretch by the water that should have felt ordinary. But in the dark hours before sunrise, a routine night near campus turned into a tragedy that left an entire community searching for answers.

Loyola University later identified the victim as Sheridan Gorman, an 18-year-old first-year student whose death has shaken Chicago and her hometown in New York. But what happened in those early morning moments of March 19, 2026, still doesn't make sense, as Sheridan was doing something that almost all kids at the campus do.

A Night That Changed Everything

Police said the shooting happened at about 1:30 a.m. Thursday at the pier at Tobey Prinz Beach in the 1000 block of West Pratt Boulevard, near Loyola University's Lake Shore Campus, as Sheridan was walking with friends.

This wasn't unusual because that spot happens to be a popular place for the students. Neighbors in the area are also known for walking their dogs there.

But this seemingly normal night took a horrible turn.

Authorities said a male suspect approached on foot, pulled out a gun, and fired in the group's direction, according to ABC7.

The freshman was hit in the head and pronounced dead at the scene. Police said no one else was injured, and officials also said she was not the intended target, a detail that only makes the loss feel even more senseless because it's not yet clear who that was supposed to be.

Loyola's Campus Safety notice said the homicide was reported around 1:15 a.m. and described the offender as someone wearing a face covering, according to the university's official notice. The school said it was continuing to work with the Chicago police as the investigation progressed.

What Neighbors Heard in the Dark

For people who live nearby, the horror did not unfold all at once. It arrived first as a sound, then as something much worse.

One neighbor told the station, "So I was just starting to go to sleep, and then we heard one pop, both my partner and I. I thought it was a firework, but then 20 minutes later, there was a lot of like blood-curdling screams that were happening."

Sandra Hauptmann, who also lives nearby, said, "It's just sad, it's a very quiet neighborhood not much happens here at the beach." She added that the area is dark and has no cameras, saying, "It's kind of dangerous. It's still the city at the end of day."

A First Year Cut Tragically Short

Sheridan was just months away from completing her first year of college. According to Loyola's statement, the university called her death "a tragic loss" and said its hearts were with her family, loved ones, and all who knew her.

The school also said that, based on the information available at that time, there was no ongoing threat to the campus community. Still, that reassurance could only go so far.

A student was gone, and the place where so many had made ordinary college memories suddenly became the site of something unimaginable. Still, the school has made counseling and support services immediately available, with professionals and ministers present for students.

A vigil was also held at Madonna della Strada Chapel at 7 p.m. that evening, giving classmates and staff a place to grieve together.

Loyola community member David Fisk put the wider grief into words, "I can't imagine the pain that is rippling through so many different communities."

Grief Spread Far Beyond Campus

As word spread, the horror reached far beyond Rogers Park. Sheridan had graduated from high school in Yorktown, New York, just last year, and the shock quickly traveled back to the place that had known her before college.

Yorktown Supervisor Ed Lachterman said, "It's just so tragic to see a life, especially such a bright light of a life, cut short and so meaninglessly."

Another student spoke from the raw place many were still sitting in, saying, "I really hope we honor Sheridan. I'm buying flowers and leaving them at the pier later today."

The student added, "I just find it to be terribly tragic to send your daughter to school and find them to be dead."

Her Family's Words Made the Loss Even Clearer

Then came the statement from Sheridan's family, and it was devastating in its clarity. Shared with NBC, it refused to soften what had happened.

"Our beloved daughter, Sheridan, was taken from us this morning in Chicago. There is no way to soften this, this was murder," the family said. They described her as "the light of our lives" and said she made people feel "seen, safe, and loved simply by being who she was."

They also made clear that their grief is tied to outrage. "We trusted that she would be safe. That trust was broken," the statement expressed, before adding that they are "demanding answers" and will not stop until the person responsible is identified and brought to justice.

The Search for Answers Continues

For now, police are still searching for the shooter, and Loyola has said it is cooperating fully with investigators. The university's notices urged anyone with information to contact Campus Safety or the Chicago Police Department, as the case remains unresolved.

That inconclusive ending is what makes this story linger. Sheridan was just starting adulthood, away at school, and spending time with friends at a spot that should have been part of a normal college year.

Instead, her first year became the last chapter of a life that so many people now describe with the same kind of aching language: bright, kind, loved, and gone far too soon.

And until someone is held accountable, that grief will keep circling the beach, the campus, and the hometown she left only to begin something new. Unfortunately, she's not the only 18-year-old who has died under similar circumstances in the past few months.

An 18-year-old ballerina who had just started college was fatally shot on Thanksgiving Eve 2025, and police say her 17-year-old ex-boyfriend pulled the trigger before turning the gun on himself.

Suffolk County Police said the shooting happened inside the teen's Nesconset, N.Y., home around 11:10 a.m. on Wednesday, November 26 last year, leaving the young woman, identified as Emily Finn, seriously wounded.

Emily, a West Sayville resident, was pronounced dead at the scene. After turning the gun on himself, the teen's parents rushed to call 911. He was taken to Stony Brook University Hospital, where officials say he remains in critical but stable condition.

Closure Turned Into Conflict

Det. Lt. Kevin Beyrer, who leads the Suffolk County homicide bureau, said Emily had visited the home to drop off her ex-boyfriend's belongings after their breakup. According to reports, the young adult had finished her studies at Sayville High School only a few months earlier, graduating in June 2025.

Emily had only just begun her college journey, while he had been looking ahead to a future in the military. A family friend told the New York Post that the breakup had hit the ex-boyfriend hard, describing it as the end of what they called "puppy love."

"It was young puppy love that stopped making sense. It wasn't going to work. Most of these young relationships don't," the friend said, adding that they had known him since he was four years old.

"I don't know where this went wrong and what led to such an extreme reaction," he continued. "People are in the comments like, 'she must've done something to him,' No, she didn't."

Consumed by Heartbreak

The family friend said the boy had never shown a pattern of violent behavior and appeared to be consumed by the emotional fallout of the breakup. He explained that the teen seemed unprepared to handle the intensity of those feelings and reacted in a way the friend found deeply disturbing.

In his view, the boy's actions reflected the kind of emotional overwhelm some adolescents face when they are convinced their world is collapsing. He also noted that the teen's parents were furious and were not trying to shield their son from responsibility.

According to him, they recognized the devastation the shooting caused — a family grieving the loss of Emily and two households suddenly shattered. Emily's family did not speak publicly in the days following her death.

A Community in Mourning

Veronica Neve Sol, a Brentwood alumna, reflected on the tragedy in a post, expressing deep sorrow for the classmates she knew who had lost a daughter and niece.

Mourners honored Emily with her favorite color at her services. According to the New York Post, her mother, Cliantha Finn, wore a pink sweater as part of the family's request that attendees incorporate the ballerina's signature shade, pink, into their clothing. Pink ribbons, bandanas, boots, jackets, and bows filled the funeral home.

The suspect is now identified as Austin Lynch. The teen's name was withheld early on because of his age, but authorities later confirmed he will be charged with second-degree murder and arraigned once he is stable. The investigation is still underway.

The young ballerina's death leaves a quiet ache in the community she once brightened. As the investigation continues, those who loved her are left mourning a future she never had the chance to live.