By Robert Medley
Managing Editor
Canadian County Sheriff’s Lt. Shirley Lanning, who was killed in a head-on collision Friday, Feb. 14, 2020, is remembered as a dedicated law officer who also had a way of making work a joy, and she will be sorely missed, Sheriff Chris West said.
Lanning, 58, was killed about 9:20 a.m. Friday just east of Sara Road on Northwest Expressway in eastern Canadian County in Oklahoma City limits. Her car crossed the median and hit an oncoming car head-on. The driver of the other car, Michael Cline, 41, and passenger Kimberly Cline, 37, both of Piedmont, were treated for minor injuries. The collision remains under investigation by Oklahoma City police.
Sheriff West praised Lanning as a law officer.
“Shirley loved people and had a way of brightening up the room when she walked in,” Sheriff West said. “She represented the truest of what it meant to be a public servant. Shirley was always willing to take on any assignment asked of her, and often jumped in to help others with assignments that weren’t even her responsibility.”
West added, “Shirley had a fun-loving spirit and brought a lot of joy to the sheriff’s office. She will be dearly missed.”
Lanning’s family has requested donations in her memory be made to a state law officers’ survivor group, the sheriff’s office reported.
Lanning became a Canadian County Sheriff’s deputy in 2014. She worked for the Oklahoma County Sheriff’s office, U.S. Marshal’s office and University of Central Oklahoma.
An obituary on the Baggerly Funeral Home website states Lanning “had a passion for law enforcement.”
“Shirley was a real spitfire. She displayed her compassionate heart by fiercely fighting for and defending all those that she loved. She was greatly loved and will be deeply missed,” the obituary states.
Lanning’s family has requested that instead of giving flowers, people make donations to Oklahoma Concerns of Police Survivors, 3100 Highland Glenn, Norman, Oklahoma, 73069.
