Man who shot dead daughter, 23, after arguing about Donald Trump claimed gun 'just went off', inquest hears
Lucy Harrison, 23, died after being was shot by her father Kris at his home in Texas last January
A father who fatally shot his 23-year-old daughter at his Texas home after an argument over Donald Trump said the pistol "just went off," an inquest has heard.
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Lucy Harrison, 23, a fashion buyer from Warrington, Cheshire, travelled to the US with her boyfriend Sam Littler when she was shot from "medium range" by Kris Harrison at his detached house in the suburb of Prosper last January.
An inquest into Ms Harrison's death previously heard that she and her father had a "big" argument earlier in the day about President Trump, who was set to be inaugurated at the time.
Mr Harrison did not attend the two-day hearing at Cheshire Coroner's Court, but in a statement said he had bought the weapon to give his family a "sense of security".
Under Texas laws, Mr Harrison did not need a licence for the gun because it was purchased for home defence.
He claimed he had a conversation about guns with his daughter and she asked to see the pistol.
In the statement, Mr Harrison, who admitted drinking wine earlier in the day, told the inquest: “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 police who attended the scene: "We got it out to have a look and just as I picked it up it just went off."
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Concluding her inquest, senior coroner Jacqueline Devonish ruled Ms Harrison's death as "unlawful."
Ms Devonish said: "To shoot her through the chest whilst she was standing would have required him to have been pointing the gun at his daughter, without checking for bullets, and pulling the trigger.
"I find these actions to be reckless."
Family members were in tears in court as the coroner announced that she found Ms Harrison died due to unlawful killing on the grounds of gross negligence manslaughter.
Giving evidence during the hearing on Tuesday, Ms Harrison's boyfriend Sam Littler said he had travelled with her to the US, where her father had moved when she was a child, for a holiday.
He said on the morning of January 10, when the couple were due to return home to the UK, an argument broke out between Ms Harrison and her father about Trump.
Mr Littler told the proceedings: "Kris and Lucy ended up having quite a big argument which led to Lucy running upstairs and being upset."
He said Ms Harrison had asked her father: "How would you feel if I was the girl in that situation and I'd been sexually assaulted?"
Mr Harrison had replied that he had two other daughters who lived with him so it would not upset him that much, Mr Littler said.
He told the coroner's court that later that day, about half an hour before they were to leave to go to the airport, Ms Harrison had been in the kitchen, when her father took her by the hand and led her into his ground floor bedroom.
About 15 seconds later he heard a loud bang and then heard Mr Harrison screaming for his wife, Heather, he said.
Mr Littler said: "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."
A medical report also found Lucy had no alcohol or drugs in her system.
It comes after a grand jury in the US ruled that no one will face prosecution over the death, Prosper Police Department said.
Ana Samuel, Mr Harrison’s attorney, accused senior coroner Jacqueline Devonshire of carrying out inquiries "more akin to a criminal investigation," claiming she failed to share documents with the legal team.
Ms Harrison's mum, Jane Coates, learned of what happened to her daughter when she was woken by a knock on the door from Sam’s mum.
Jane and Sam said in a tribute to Lucy: "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.
"She was the embodiment of wonderful contradictions; she adored travel and being away, experiencing new places and cultures, yet at the same time, she loved nothing more than snuggling up in her pyjamas with her candles on at home.
"She could be dramatic and elaborate situations like it was the end of the world, yet she could also be straight talking and not afraid to have bold conversations."