A Cook County judge has decreed that Michael Goodman, the individual accused of fatally shooting a 9-year-old girl in Portage Park over the weekend, be detained without the option of posting bond.
Goodman, aged 43, made an appearance in bond court on Tuesday, facing charges of first-degree murder in the case of Serabi Medina, who was tragically killed on August 5th in the 3500 block of North Long Avenue.
During the hearing, Goodman was assigned a public defender.
During the court proceedings on Tuesday, prosecutors revealed that Serabi Medina was riding her scooter while her father, Michael Medina, aged 52, was outside their residence.
At that time, one of Medina’s acquaintances gave money to Serabi to purchase ice cream from a nearby truck. Serabi acquired two ice creams, sharing one with her father.
Shortly thereafter, a gunshot was heard in the vicinity. In response, Michael Medina instructed his daughter to return to their apartment with her scooter, as per details outlined in a bond proffer read in court.
As Serabi neared the entrance of her apartment, Goodman emerged from a building across the street while brandishing a firearm.
An observant bystander informed others about Goodman’s actions as he crossed the street, visibly carrying a gun and advancing toward Serabi, according to the prosecution’s account. Despite Michael Medina’s shouts, Goodman paid no heed. Subsequently, Goodman pursued Serabi into the building’s vestibule, where he drew his firearm and shot her in the head, as stated in the court documents.
“When he lifted the gun, Mike noticed him and exclaimed, ‘that’s my daughter!’” recounted Rene Aquino, an eyewitness and friend of Serabi’s father. Aquino further described the events, stating, “Mike began approaching him, but the assailant approached Serabi and fired a shot directly at her head.” As per Aquino’s account, Michael Medina tackled Goodman into the vestibule, causing the gun to discharge once more and hitting Goodman in the eye, prosecutors stated.
Serabi was swiftly transported to Stroger Hospital in a critical state, but sadly, she succumbed to a gunshot wound to the head, as confirmed by the medical examiner’s office.
In the course of the investigation, Goodman’s hands were swabbed for gunshot residue, yielding a positive result, according to the details presented. Michael Medina, accompanied by three witnesses, definitively identified Goodman as the individual responsible for the shooting.
Law enforcement retrieved a 9mm shell casing from outside Medina’s residence, and a 9mm Canik firearm was recovered from the vestibule where the confrontation occurred, prosecutors revealed. The firearm still contained a shell casing jammed inside it.
During the search of Goodman’s residence, investigators uncovered a 9mm bullet lodged within a wall, a 9mm shell casing, a box of 9mm ammunition bearing the same headstamp as the shell casings recovered from the incident location, as well as a Canik gun box.
Prosecutors detailed that the gun box contained a receipt displaying Goodman’s name and a serial number that matched the one on the firearm discovered in proximity to Medina’s apartment complex. It was also noted that Goodman possessed a valid FOID card, which was retrieved from his residence by investigators.
Michael Goodman charged with the murder of 9-year-old girl Serabi Medina while playing outside in Chicago’s Portage Park