Father shoots daughter after heated argument over Donald Trump
A coroner’s court has heard how a 23-year-old British woman was fatally shot by her father at his home in the United States following an emotional disagreement on the day she had been due to fly back to the UK.
Lucy Harrison, from Warrington in Cheshire, had travelled to Prosper, Texas, in January 2025 with her boyfriend, Sam Littler, to visit her father, Kris Harrison, and his family. The couple were preparing to return home when the incident occurred.
During the inquest, Littler said Lucy often felt uneasy about her father’s interest in firearms, adding that the subject had caused tension in the past.
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On the morning of 10 January, he told the court, Lucy and her father became involved in a heated exchange about U.S. politics. The disagreement left Lucy visibly distressed and she went upstairs in tears.
Littler recounted that shortly before they were due to leave for the airport, Kris Harrison took Lucy by the hand and led her into his ground-floor bedroom. Moments later, he heard a gunshot.
“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 said in his evidence.
The court was told that Harrison had previously undergone rehabilitation for alcohol addiction. He did not attend the hearing in person, but a statement prepared on his behalf was read by his lawyer.
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In that account, Harrison said he and his daughter had been watching a television report about gun crime. He said he mentioned that he owned a firearm and asked if she wanted to see it. They then went into the bedroom, where he kept a Glock 9mm handgun in a bedside cabinet.
He said he had purchased the weapon several years earlier for what he described as a sense of security and had not previously discussed it with Lucy.
“As I lifted the gun to show her I suddenly heard a loud bang. I did not understand what had happened. Lucy immediately fell,” the statement read. Harrison added that he could not recall whether his finger had been on the trigger.
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He also acknowledged past struggles with alcohol and said he had briefly relapsed that day because he was emotional about Lucy’s imminent departure. A police officer who later attended the house said she detected alcohol on his breath, while CCTV footage showed he had bought wine earlier.
At the opening of proceedings, Harrison’s legal representative asked the coroner, Jacqueline Devonish, to withdraw from the case, arguing there could be a perception of bias and that the inquiry was being handled like a criminal process. The request was opposed by counsel for Lucy’s mother, Jane Coates, who described the move as an ambush. The coroner declined to step aside.
In a separate message released through his solicitors, Harrison said he accepted responsibility for what had happened. “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.
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Lucy’s mother paid tribute to her daughter, who worked as a buyer for fashion retailer Boohoo, describing her as a vibrant young woman who loved passionate debate and stood firmly by her beliefs.
The inquest was adjourned and is expected to resume, when the coroner will deliver her conclusions.
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