Thomas Gorman, Jessica Gorman and Madelon Gorman discuss the loss of Sheridan and stopping crime on 'The Story.'

Grieving parents of American children killed by illegal immigrants issued a desperate plea to the nation’s leaders: "Choose us."

Angel families are supporting the Gorman family, who spoke on "The Story" about the failures that led to their daughter’s death.

"I don't understand what these politicians are thinking," Jess Gorman, mother of Sheridan Gorman, said Thursday.

Sheridan Gorman, a first-year student at Loyola University, was shot and killed in Chicago in March.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said the suspect — Jose Medina-Medina, an illegal immigrant from Venezuela — was released from custody months earlier despite an active Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detainer.

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Madelon, Jess and Tom Gorman, family members of Sheridan Gorman, appeared on "The Story" to discuss the death of their daughter and sister. ("The Story"/Fox News)

"To me, things like that show that they value these undocumented migrants more than they value our American citizens, our American children. And honestly, you almost want to just make a plea: 'Choose us. Choose my American child,'" Jess Gorman added.

Now, angel families are calling for accountability.

"Isn't that their jobs to keep us safe? And they're just, they're not," Cheryl Minter said Friday on "Fox & Friends First."

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Joe Abraham holds a photograph of himself with his 20-year-old daughter, Katie Abraham, at their family home in Glenview, Ill., on Sept. 10, 2025. (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)

Minter's daughter, Stephanie, was stabbed and killed at a Virginia bus stop in February. Authorities charged a suspect from Sierra Leone with a lengthy criminal history.

"They're allowing all these people that just do horrendous crimes over and over again to stay in our streets, and they're not even detaining them at all," Minter said. "It's just horrible that this keeps happening."

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Joe Abraham, whose daughter Katie was killed in a January 2025 hit-and-run in Urbana, Illinois, said he shares that concern. Abraham argued the man, an illegal immigrant, convicted in his daughter's case was "protected every step of the way" by state policies.

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"Not every victim dies like Katie or Sheridan. There are so many victims that are created every day because of these reckless guardrailless policies," Abraham said.

"It's amazing to me, no one in Illinois steps up and says, 'Yeah, we got to reassess, and we've got to change direction a little bit.'"

Sheridan Gorman and her father, Tom Gorman, are seen in a family photo. (Gorman Family/Fox News)

The Gormans say their daughter's death was not "senseless violence," but the result of systemic failures.

"I just think that when policies are in place that protect unvetted migrants who do commit a crime, there is a risk," said Tom Gorman, Sheridan’s father.

"I have to live every day with a choice in my head. Was my daughter an unintended consequence of good policy or the consequence of bad policy? And I know the answer for me," he said.

President Donald Trump spoke during a Mother’s Day luncheon in the Rose Garden of the White House on May 8, 2026, in Washington, D.C. Trump hosted Angel Mothers and Gold Star mothers for the event. (Aaron Schwartz/CNP/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

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At an event at the White House Friday, President Donald Trump issued a statement to the mothers in attendance: "I just want to wish you all a very happy Mother’s Day. We’re going to have a great Mother’s Day."

"And for those mothers that lost their child, many of whom are with us today, the angel moms and others, Gold Star moms, we love you especially. We love you, maybe even the most," he added.

Following the Gormans’ comments, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker's office issued a statement to Fox News: "The family of Sheridan Gorman remains in Governor Pritzker’s thoughts as they grieve and navigate the unimaginable loss of their daughter. He believes the person responsible for their daughter’s death needs to be held accountable to the fullest extent of the law and with the entire weight and urgency of our justice system that her family deserves."

Madison is a writer for Fox News Digital on the Flash team.

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