On Christmas day 2020, while millions of American families were navigating virtual holiday gatherings, Jeremy Hepker was sitting in an Iowa City hospital room holding the hand of Marisa Doolin, his teenage niece. Doolin had been shot in the face three days earlier and was in a medically induced coma to stop the swelling in her brain. The next day, Doolin’s family decided to take the 18-year-old off life support.
“I felt so powerless, I felt so angry and I felt vengeful,” Hepker said.
