Cheshire police cite limits on intervening in Lucy Harrison’s US case

Deputy Chief Constable Mike Evans told Lucy’s mother, Jane Coates, that Cheshire Constabulary had “no lawful authority to intervene in decisions taken by” US agencies, according to a letter quoted by the BBC. He said legal, jurisdictional and practical constraints limited what police in England and Wales could do when a death occurred in the United States.

Coates had asked the force to gather evidence locally and liaise with US authorities. Her lawyer, Radd Seiger, said the family was not asking Cheshire to take over the American investigation, but to obtain and examine evidence they believe has not been properly investigated.

Seiger said a recent download from Lucy’s phone contained information the family considered relevant to the circumstances leading up to her death. He also said the family had concerns about whether all relevant evidence had been gathered and considered.

Evans said a senior investigating officer had been assigned to the case, a family liaison officer appointed and information sought from US law enforcement agencies.

Lucy, 23, from Warrington, was shot in the chest at her father Kris Harrison’s home in Prosper, Texas, on 10 January 2025. He told police the handgun went off accidentally while he was showing it to her.

A Collin County grand jury declined to indict him on a charge of criminally negligent homicide. In February 2026, an English coroner concluded that Lucy had been unlawfully killed through gross negligence manslaughter. The inquest did not result in a criminal conviction.

In September, Prosper police told local broadcaster FOX 4 that it and the Texas Rangers had conducted a thorough investigation and that the force would not reopen the case.