Topline: Court proceedings revealed that a dispute over President Donald Trump preceded the moment a British woman was shot dead in her father’s Texas home as she prepared to fly back to the UK.
Published: February 12, 2026 8:00 am ET
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Lucy Harrison (via Cheshire Constabulary)
WARRINGTON, ENGLAND — A holiday visit to Texas ended in tragedy for a 23-year-old British woman after a political argument with her father about Donald Trump preceded the moment she was shot dead.
Lucy Harrison, from Warrington, Cheshire, died on 10 January 2025 after being shot in the chest at her father’s detached home in Prosper, near Dallas. According to BBC reporting of evidence heard at Cheshire Coroner’s Court, the shooting followed a “big argument” earlier that day about Trump, who was preparing to be inaugurated for his second term 10 days later.
The inquest into the circumstances of Lucy’s death opened at Cheshire Coroner’s Court, with proceedings later adjourned. Cheshire Constabulary confirmed Lucy died “following an incident at her father’s home in Prosper, Texas,” and said her family had requested privacy at this difficult time.
Giving evidence, Lucy’s boyfriend, Sam Littler, told the court the couple had traveled to the United States for a holiday, arriving at her father Kris Harrison’s home on December 28 after flying from Heathrow, according to the Liverpool Echo. The pair had bought their first home together in Warrington nine months earlier and had hosted family for Christmas just days before leaving the UK.
On the morning of January 10, Littler said tensions flared during a discussion about Trump. According to the BBC, Lucy asked her father during the row: “How would you feel if I was the girl in that situation and I’d been sexually assaulted?” Kris Harrison replied that he had two other daughters living with him so it would not upset him that much. Littler said Lucy became “quite upset” and ran upstairs.
He told the inquest she was “emotionally drained” that day and described “lots of ups and downs,” the Liverpool Echo reported. The couple had packed their suitcases and were ready to leave for the airport, about 30 to 45 minutes before they were due to set off. Lucy was looking forward to returning home to see her mother, Littler said.
According to BBC reporting, about half an hour before they were due to leave, Lucy was in the kitchen when her father took her by the hand and led her into his ground-floor bedroom. Littler said he heard a loud bang roughly 15 seconds later, followed by Kris Harrison screaming for his wife, Heather.
“I remember running into the room and Lucy was lying on the floor near the entrance to the bathroom and Kris was just screaming, just sort of nonsense,” Littler told the court, according to the BBC.
A medical report cited by the Liverpool Echo stated Lucy was shot in the chest from “medium range” by another person, with five witnesses present in the house. The Glock 9mm semi-automatic handgun involved had been kept in a bedside cabinet under a stack of books, the inquest heard.
In a statement read to the court and reported by the BBC and Liverpool Echo, Kris Harrison said he and his daughter had been watching a news segment about gun crime in the United States when he told her he had a gun and asked if she wanted to see it.
“We went to the bedroom where I had the gun,” he said. “As I lifted the gun to show her I suddenly heard a loud bang. I did not understand what had happened. Lucy immediately fell.”
He told the court he could not recall whether his finger was on the trigger, according to police evidence cited by the Liverpool Echo. Harrison said he had never had any “formal training” and had “never fired a gun,” and that he had purchased the weapon from a colleague at work. He previously told the court he had bought the firearm a couple of years earlier because he wanted a “sense of security” for his family, according to the BBC.
The inquest heard Harrison had a history of alcohol addiction and had previously attended rehabilitation. Evidence reported by the BBC stated he admitted relapsing on the day of the shooting and drinking about 500ml of white wine because he was emotional about his daughter leaving. CCTV footage showed he purchased two cartons of Chardonnay from a 7-Eleven shortly before 2 p.m., and a responding officer detected the smell of alcohol on his breath, the BBC reported.
According to the Liverpool Echo, a friend of Lucy’s told the inquest Harrison had suffered an alcoholic seizure in 2023 before being placed in an induced coma and later admitted to rehab, and that he had relapsed again in March 2024 ahead of the trip.
Prosper police investigated Lucy’s death as possible manslaughter, the BBC reported, but in June a grand jury in Collin County declined to indict Kris Harrison. As the Liverpool Echo explained, a Texas grand jury determines whether there is probable cause to believe a felony was committed and conducts its proceedings in private. No criminal case was ultimately brought.
At the opening of the inquest, Harrison’s legal representative, Ana Samuel, applied for senior coroner Jacqueline Devonish to recuse herself, arguing that a fair-minded observer might conclude there was a “real possibility she was biased,” according to the BBC. She said the inquest had been conducted “in a manner more akin to a criminal investigation than a fact-finding inquiry.” The application was opposed by counsel representing Lucy’s mother, Jane Coates, and was refused by the coroner.
In a statement issued through his solicitors and reported by the BBC and Liverpool Echo, Kris Harrison said he “fully accepted” the consequences of his actions. “There isn’t a day I don’t feel the weight of that loss, a weight I will carry for the rest of my life,” he said.
He also described his daughter as “the light of my life,” adding: “Losing Lucy has shattered all of us. I lost my best friend.” He said she had written a letter during her visit describing Texas as her home and saying she felt lucky to be part of “the best family in the whole wide world.”
Lucy’s mother, Jane Coates, described her daughter as a “real force of life,” according to the BBC. “She cared. She was passionate about things. She loved to have debates about things that meant a lot to her,” she said. In a statement released after an earlier hearing and shared by Cheshire Constabulary, Lucy’s family said: “Lucy was life. she lived it fiercely and fearlessly, not being afraid to feel all that life has to offer. Lucy unashamedly loved – she had a huge capacity to love and be loved.”
They added: “She was truly thriving in life and although this gives us great comfort, we are utterly heartbroken at the loss of our beautiful, gorgeous Luce.”
The inquest has been adjourned, with the coroner expected to deliver her conclusions at a later date.
Presumption of Innocence: A presumption of innocence means that any defendant in a criminal trial is presumed to be innocent until they have been proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. The defendant in this case is only accused of the charges set forth in the criminal complaint. They are innocent until proven guilty.
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Inquest: Argument Over Trump Took Place Hours Before Father Fatally Shot Daughter in Texas
Court proceedings revealed that a dispute over President Donald Trump preceded the moment a British woman was shot dead in her father’s Texas home as she prepared to fly back to the UK.
By Jacob Charles
Published: February 12, 2026 8:00 am ET
Lucy Harrison (via Cheshire Constabulary)
WARRINGTON, ENGLAND — A holiday visit to Texas ended in tragedy for a 23-year-old British woman after a political argument with her father about Donald Trump preceded the moment she was shot dead.
Lucy Harrison, from Warrington, Cheshire, died on 10 January 2025 after being shot in the chest at her father’s detached home in Prosper, near Dallas. According to BBC reporting of evidence heard at Cheshire Coroner’s Court, the shooting followed a “big argument” earlier that day about Trump, who was preparing to be inaugurated for his second term 10 days later.
The inquest into the circumstances of Lucy’s death opened at Cheshire Coroner’s Court, with proceedings later adjourned. Cheshire Constabulary confirmed Lucy died “following an incident at her father’s home in Prosper, Texas,” and said her family had requested privacy at this difficult time.
Giving evidence, Lucy’s boyfriend, Sam Littler, told the court the couple had traveled to the United States for a holiday, arriving at her father Kris Harrison’s home on December 28 after flying from Heathrow, according to the Liverpool Echo. The pair had bought their first home together in Warrington nine months earlier and had hosted family for Christmas just days before leaving the UK.
On the morning of January 10, Littler said tensions flared during a discussion about Trump. According to the BBC, Lucy asked her father during the row: “How would you feel if I was the girl in that situation and I’d been sexually assaulted?” Kris Harrison replied that he had two other daughters living with him so it would not upset him that much. Littler said Lucy became “quite upset” and ran upstairs.
He told the inquest she was “emotionally drained” that day and described “lots of ups and downs,” the Liverpool Echo reported. The couple had packed their suitcases and were ready to leave for the airport, about 30 to 45 minutes before they were due to set off. Lucy was looking forward to returning home to see her mother, Littler said.
According to BBC reporting, about half an hour before they were due to leave, Lucy was in the kitchen when her father took her by the hand and led her into his ground-floor bedroom. Littler said he heard a loud bang roughly 15 seconds later, followed by Kris Harrison screaming for his wife, Heather.
“I remember running into the room and Lucy was lying on the floor near the entrance to the bathroom and Kris was just screaming, just sort of nonsense,” Littler told the court, according to the BBC.
A medical report cited by the Liverpool Echo stated Lucy was shot in the chest from “medium range” by another person, with five witnesses present in the house. The Glock 9mm semi-automatic handgun involved had been kept in a bedside cabinet under a stack of books, the inquest heard.
In a statement read to the court and reported by the BBC and Liverpool Echo, Kris Harrison said he and his daughter had been watching a news segment about gun crime in the United States when he told her he had a gun and asked if she wanted to see it.
“We went to the bedroom where I had the gun,” he said. “As I lifted the gun to show her I suddenly heard a loud bang. I did not understand what had happened. Lucy immediately fell.”
He told the court he could not recall whether his finger was on the trigger, according to police evidence cited by the Liverpool Echo. Harrison said he had never had any “formal training” and had “never fired a gun,” and that he had purchased the weapon from a colleague at work. He previously told the court he had bought the firearm a couple of years earlier because he wanted a “sense of security” for his family, according to the BBC.
The inquest heard Harrison had a history of alcohol addiction and had previously attended rehabilitation. Evidence reported by the BBC stated he admitted relapsing on the day of the shooting and drinking about 500ml of white wine because he was emotional about his daughter leaving. CCTV footage showed he purchased two cartons of Chardonnay from a 7-Eleven shortly before 2 p.m., and a responding officer detected the smell of alcohol on his breath, the BBC reported.
According to the Liverpool Echo, a friend of Lucy’s told the inquest Harrison had suffered an alcoholic seizure in 2023 before being placed in an induced coma and later admitted to rehab, and that he had relapsed again in March 2024 ahead of the trip.
Prosper police investigated Lucy’s death as possible manslaughter, the BBC reported, but in June a grand jury in Collin County declined to indict Kris Harrison. As the Liverpool Echo explained, a Texas grand jury determines whether there is probable cause to believe a felony was committed and conducts its proceedings in private. No criminal case was ultimately brought.
At the opening of the inquest, Harrison’s legal representative, Ana Samuel, applied for senior coroner Jacqueline Devonish to recuse herself, arguing that a fair-minded observer might conclude there was a “real possibility she was biased,” according to the BBC. She said the inquest had been conducted “in a manner more akin to a criminal investigation than a fact-finding inquiry.” The application was opposed by counsel representing Lucy’s mother, Jane Coates, and was refused by the coroner.
In a statement issued through his solicitors and reported by the BBC and Liverpool Echo, Kris Harrison said he “fully accepted” the consequences of his actions. “There isn’t a day I don’t feel the weight of that loss, a weight I will carry for the rest of my life,” he said.
He also described his daughter as “the light of my life,” adding: “Losing Lucy has shattered all of us. I lost my best friend.” He said she had written a letter during her visit describing Texas as her home and saying she felt lucky to be part of “the best family in the whole wide world.”
Lucy’s mother, Jane Coates, described her daughter as a “real force of life,” according to the BBC. “She cared. She was passionate about things. She loved to have debates about things that meant a lot to her,” she said. In a statement released after an earlier hearing and shared by Cheshire Constabulary, Lucy’s family said: “Lucy was life. she lived it fiercely and fearlessly, not being afraid to feel all that life has to offer. Lucy unashamedly loved – she had a huge capacity to love and be loved.”
They added: “She was truly thriving in life and although this gives us great comfort, we are utterly heartbroken at the loss of our beautiful, gorgeous Luce.”
The inquest has been adjourned, with the coroner expected to deliver her conclusions at a later date.
Presumption of Innocence: A presumption of innocence means that any defendant in a criminal trial is presumed to be innocent until they have been proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. The defendant in this case is only accused of the charges set forth in the criminal complaint. They are innocent until proven guilty.
Editor's Note: ThePo makes every effort to accurately transcribe the contents of affidavits of probable cause contained in criminal complaints. Often, the complaints themselves are copies of copies of faxed copies, and are difficult to read. To confirm the accuracy of our transcription, contact the Magisterial District Court listed above and request a copy of the criminal complaint. It's a public record to which you are entitled.
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Editor Picks
Latest Articles
Inquest: Argument Over Trump Took Place Hours Before Father Fatally Shot Daughter in Texas
Court proceedings revealed that a dispute over President Donald Trump preceded the moment a British woman was shot dead in her father’s Texas home as she prepared to fly back to the UK.
By Jacob Charles
Published: February 12, 2026 8:00 am ET
Lucy Harrison (via Cheshire Constabulary)
WARRINGTON, ENGLAND — A holiday visit to Texas ended in tragedy for a 23-year-old British woman after a political argument with her father about Donald Trump preceded the moment she was shot dead.
Lucy Harrison, from Warrington, Cheshire, died on 10 January 2025 after being shot in the chest at her father’s detached home in Prosper, near Dallas. According to BBC reporting of evidence heard at Cheshire Coroner’s Court, the shooting followed a “big argument” earlier that day about Trump, who was preparing to be inaugurated for his second term 10 days later.
The inquest into the circumstances of Lucy’s death opened at Cheshire Coroner’s Court, with proceedings later adjourned. Cheshire Constabulary confirmed Lucy died “following an incident at her father’s home in Prosper, Texas,” and said her family had requested privacy at this difficult time.
Giving evidence, Lucy’s boyfriend, Sam Littler, told the court the couple had traveled to the United States for a holiday, arriving at her father Kris Harrison’s home on December 28 after flying from Heathrow, according to the Liverpool Echo. The pair had bought their first home together in Warrington nine months earlier and had hosted family for Christmas just days before leaving the UK.
On the morning of January 10, Littler said tensions flared during a discussion about Trump. According to the BBC, Lucy asked her father during the row: “How would you feel if I was the girl in that situation and I’d been sexually assaulted?” Kris Harrison replied that he had two other daughters living with him so it would not upset him that much. Littler said Lucy became “quite upset” and ran upstairs.
He told the inquest she was “emotionally drained” that day and described “lots of ups and downs,” the Liverpool Echo reported. The couple had packed their suitcases and were ready to leave for the airport, about 30 to 45 minutes before they were due to set off. Lucy was looking forward to returning home to see her mother, Littler said.
According to BBC reporting, about half an hour before they were due to leave, Lucy was in the kitchen when her father took her by the hand and led her into his ground-floor bedroom. Littler said he heard a loud bang roughly 15 seconds later, followed by Kris Harrison screaming for his wife, Heather.
“I remember running into the room and Lucy was lying on the floor near the entrance to the bathroom and Kris was just screaming, just sort of nonsense,” Littler told the court, according to the BBC.
A medical report cited by the Liverpool Echo stated Lucy was shot in the chest from “medium range” by another person, with five witnesses present in the house. The Glock 9mm semi-automatic handgun involved had been kept in a bedside cabinet under a stack of books, the inquest heard.
In a statement read to the court and reported by the BBC and Liverpool Echo, Kris Harrison said he and his daughter had been watching a news segment about gun crime in the United States when he told her he had a gun and asked if she wanted to see it.
“We went to the bedroom where I had the gun,” he said. “As I lifted the gun to show her I suddenly heard a loud bang. I did not understand what had happened. Lucy immediately fell.”
He told the court he could not recall whether his finger was on the trigger, according to police evidence cited by the Liverpool Echo. Harrison said he had never had any “formal training” and had “never fired a gun,” and that he had purchased the weapon from a colleague at work. He previously told the court he had bought the firearm a couple of years earlier because he wanted a “sense of security” for his family, according to the BBC.
The inquest heard Harrison had a history of alcohol addiction and had previously attended rehabilitation. Evidence reported by the BBC stated he admitted relapsing on the day of the shooting and drinking about 500ml of white wine because he was emotional about his daughter leaving. CCTV footage showed he purchased two cartons of Chardonnay from a 7-Eleven shortly before 2 p.m., and a responding officer detected the smell of alcohol on his breath, the BBC reported.
According to the Liverpool Echo, a friend of Lucy’s told the inquest Harrison had suffered an alcoholic seizure in 2023 before being placed in an induced coma and later admitted to rehab, and that he had relapsed again in March 2024 ahead of the trip.
Prosper police investigated Lucy’s death as possible manslaughter, the BBC reported, but in June a grand jury in Collin County declined to indict Kris Harrison. As the Liverpool Echo explained, a Texas grand jury determines whether there is probable cause to believe a felony was committed and conducts its proceedings in private. No criminal case was ultimately brought.
At the opening of the inquest, Harrison’s legal representative, Ana Samuel, applied for senior coroner Jacqueline Devonish to recuse herself, arguing that a fair-minded observer might conclude there was a “real possibility she was biased,” according to the BBC. She said the inquest had been conducted “in a manner more akin to a criminal investigation than a fact-finding inquiry.” The application was opposed by counsel representing Lucy’s mother, Jane Coates, and was refused by the coroner.
In a statement issued through his solicitors and reported by the BBC and Liverpool Echo, Kris Harrison said he “fully accepted” the consequences of his actions. “There isn’t a day I don’t feel the weight of that loss, a weight I will carry for the rest of my life,” he said.
He also described his daughter as “the light of my life,” adding: “Losing Lucy has shattered all of us. I lost my best friend.” He said she had written a letter during her visit describing Texas as her home and saying she felt lucky to be part of “the best family in the whole wide world.”
Lucy’s mother, Jane Coates, described her daughter as a “real force of life,” according to the BBC. “She cared. She was passionate about things. She loved to have debates about things that meant a lot to her,” she said. In a statement released after an earlier hearing and shared by Cheshire Constabulary, Lucy’s family said: “Lucy was life. she lived it fiercely and fearlessly, not being afraid to feel all that life has to offer. Lucy unashamedly loved – she had a huge capacity to love and be loved.”
They added: “She was truly thriving in life and although this gives us great comfort, we are utterly heartbroken at the loss of our beautiful, gorgeous Luce.”
The inquest has been adjourned, with the coroner expected to deliver her conclusions at a later date.
Presumption of Innocence: A presumption of innocence means that any defendant in a criminal trial is presumed to be innocent until they have been proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. The defendant in this case is only accused of the charges set forth in the criminal complaint. They are innocent until proven guilty.
Editor's Note: ThePo makes every effort to accurately transcribe the contents of affidavits of probable cause contained in criminal complaints. Often, the complaints themselves are copies of copies of faxed copies, and are difficult to read. To confirm the accuracy of our transcription, contact the Magisterial District Court listed above and request a copy of the criminal complaint. It's a public record to which you are entitled.
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