[Snippet below from the story by Rachel Weiner]

When Oregon’s high-capacity-magazine ban was challenged, the state called historians and statisticians to make that case. But their final witness was Jenna Longenecker, who had a different kind of experience: Both her parents had been killed by gunfire.

First, in December 2012, her mother was shopping for Christmas presents at a local mall when a 22-year-old with an AR-15 opened fire from the food court. Four years later, her father, deeply depressed, killed himself with a gun he purchased that summer. Oregon’s magazine limit and new permitting process could have changed both stories, she said.

Watching her testify, firearms advocate and instructor Derek LeBlanc had a different view. A friend of his was at the mall the day Longenecker’s mother was killed and pulled out a Glock that holds 15 bullets in its magazine. Though the friend told police he did not fire, fearing more carnage, he also told law enforcement and reporters he believed the gunman saw the Glock and retreated. (Police said they had no evidence to confirm or contradict that theory).

Longenecker says she doesn’t want to ban all firearms. Her husband, a veteran, owns several. But she now worries about their children falling victim to gunfire.

“There’s always going to be people on the other side who disagree. I’ve tried to do my best to understand what they’re saying and why and understand their thought process, because that’s the only way we’ll make progress,” she said. But, she added, “I worry more than anything that this issue is not going to get better.”