My daughter was shot dead by her father. Why wasn’t he arrested?

My daughter was shot dead by her father. Why wasn’t he arrested?

From The Story by The Times

April 20, 2026 · 35 min

About this episode

The episode discusses the tragic case of Lucy Coates, who was shot dead by her father, and the subsequent lack of legal action taken against him.

Jane Coates’ daughter Lucy was just 23 when she was shot and killed by her father, while visiting him in Texas. US authorities quickly ruled her death an accident and no charges were brought. But as The Sunday Times reveals holes in Lucy’s father’s account, Jane wants the case reopened. This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: http://thetimes.com/thestory Guest:  Katie Tarrant, news reporter for The Sunday Times Jane Coates, victim’s mother Sam Littler, victim’s boyfriend and witness Host: Manveen Rana Producers: Julia Webster We want to hear from you - email: thestory@thetimes.com Read more:   Britain failed family’ of girl shot dead by father in Texas Father shot daughter dead after ‘arguing about Donald Trump Photo: Picture provided by the family, graphic by Kathia Mestanza This podcast was brought to you thanks to subscribers of The Times and The Sunday Times. To enjoy unlimited digital access to all our journalism subscribe  here . Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

People in this episode

Host: Manveen Rana

Guests: Jane Coates’, Katie Tarrant, Sam Littler

Topics covered

  • shooting
  • family
  • justice
  • accident
  • Texas

Keywords

  • gun violence
  • father
  • daughter
  • reopening case

Mentioned in this episode

Places: Texas, US, Britain

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