Cheshire Police cite jurisdictional limits in Texas shooting investigation
British police have told Lucy Harrison’s mother they cannot intervene in the US investigation into her daughter’s death, citing legal and jurisdictional limits. The 23-year-old from Warrington was shot in Texas in January 2025, and a US grand jury declined to indict her father, despite a British coroner ruling her death unlawful.
Jane Coates has asked Cheshire Police to gather evidence in Britain and liaise with US authorities, while her lawyer says the family believes evidence may not have been properly examined. Police said investigating is severely constrained because the suspect, witnesses and evidence are overseas. Coates travelled more than 4,000 miles to Texas in September to ask prosecutors to reopen the case; records indicate the shooting was treated as accidental from the outset and her father was not arrested.
In short
- Cheshire Police say they cannot intervene in the US case.
- A grand jury declined to indict Lucy Harrison’s father.
- Her mother travelled to Texas seeking a renewed investigation.
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The case for
The family’s request for British police to gather evidence and liaise with US authorities is a reasonable call for scrutiny across borders, particularly after a British coroner ruled the death unlawful and the family questions whether evidence was fully examined. Even if Cheshire Police cannot investigate in Texas, it could be argued that collecting relevant evidence in Britain or seeking clearer cooperation would help establish what happened and reassure relatives that the case received careful attention.
The case against
Cheshire Police’s position reflects the limits of its legal authority and practical reach: the suspect, witnesses and key evidence are in the United States, where local authorities and prosecutors control the investigation. Asking British officers to pursue inquiries they lack the powers or access to conduct could duplicate US work or create expectations they cannot meet; cooperation may be more effective through the relevant US agencies and legal channels.
Explained simply
Lucy Harrison was a 23-year-old woman from Warrington who died from a gunshot wound in Texas in January 2025. Her father was present, and US authorities treated the shooting as accidental; a grand jury later decided not to bring charges.
The case involves separate legal systems in Britain and the United States. A British coroner ruled that Harrison’s death was unlawful, while decisions about a possible criminal case in Texas rest with US authorities.
Harrison’s mother, Jane Coates, has sought further examination of the evidence and contact between police in Britain and the US. The case matters to the family because they question whether the circumstances of Harrison’s death were fully investigated.
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Originally published by Daily Mail as “UK police tell mother of British woman shot and killed by her father in Texas they have ‘no authority to intervene’ in her fight for justice”.