His Only Living Boy

Roger Stringer testified against his son Zac in the fatal shooting that killed his younger child. Now he believes Remington’s defective rifle is to blame, and he’s fighting to hold the gun maker accountable.

[Photo Illustration: Najeebah Al-Ghadban]

They drove four hours south through Mississippi, back down the gravel road that led to a house that once belonged to a family.

Roger Stringer climbed out of his red Nissan pickup and watched as his son Zac eyed the front door. Inside the house, pencil marks still notched the pantry wall, reminders of the boys Zac and his younger brother, Justin, had been. The last time the boys had lived there, they’d been 15 and 11.

“Well,” Roger said. “Here we are, buddy.”

Casey Parks, writing for The Trace in partnership with Mississippi Today, shares the truly remarkable tale of Roger Stringer v. Remington.