Kamal Ghorui
A British woman was shot dead by her father at his home in Texas following an argument about Donald Trump and US politics, an inquest in the UK has heard.A UK court examined the death of 23-year-old Lucy Harrison, who was visiting her father in the United States with her boyfriend at the time of the shooting.Lucy Harrison had travelled to Texas from Warrington, Cheshire, with her partner, Sam Littler, to stay with her father, Kris Harrison, and his family at their home in Prosper, near Dallas. The shooting took place on January 10, 2025, only hours before the couple were due to return to the UK.Giving evidence, the boyfriend told the court that Lucy and her father often clashed, particularly over his ownership of a gun. On the morning of the incident, as the couple prepared to leave for the airport, a “big” argument broke out between father and daughter about Donald Trump, who was due to be inaugurated as US president for the second time.“Kris and Lucy ended up having quite a big argument which led to Lucy running upstairs and being upset,” Littler said. He told the court that during the dispute, Lucy asked her father how he would feel if she were sexually assaulted. According to the evidence, Harrison replied that he had two other daughters and it “would not upset him that much”.Littler said that around half an hour later, Harrison took his daughter by the hand and led her into his ground-floor bedroom. About 15 seconds later, he heard a loud bang, followed by Harrison shouting for his wife, Heather. When Littler entered the room, Lucy was lying on the floor near the bathroom doorway.Lucy died from a single gunshot wound to the chest. She worked as a fashion buyer for Boohoo and was described by her mother, Jane Coates, as a “real force of life” who cared deeply about social issues and enjoyed debate.The court heard that Harrison had previously received treatment for alcohol addiction. He did not attend the inquest, and his legal representative said the proceedings had been conducted more like a criminal investigation than a fact-finding hearing.Police in Prosper investigated the death as a possible case of manslaughter. However, a Collin County grand jury declined to indict Kris Harrison, and no criminal charges were brought in US.
