Family, Friends Pay Their Respects To Canadian Co. Lieutenant Killed In Crash

Friends and family gathered on Monday to pay their respects to Lieutenant Shirley Lanning.

The Canadian County deputy was killed in a crash last Friday, that also injured two others.

Lieutenant Lanning was known as a hero to many.

For years, she watched over others, but today it was her brothers and sisters in uniform that watched over her at the Baggerley Funeral Home in Edmond.

“She was always there with a smile on her face,” said Lt. Mike Grimes, Lanning’s partner. “Her and I worked together a lot. It's going to be a big hole. It's going to a be a hole that is hard to fill.”

Lanning was killed last Friday after her unmarked patrol vehicle crossed the center line and hit a minivan head-on in Oklahoma City.

Those in the minivan have since been released from the hospital.

Police don't know what caused the crash, but it remains under investigation.

The tragedy sent a shockwave through the Canadian County Sheriff's Office where Lanning has worked for the past six years.

Sheriff Chris West said that Lanning has been a giant in the law enforcement community for decades.

“We want to remember her as how she lived and how important she was to all of us and how much she meant to us,” he said.

Funeral services will be held at 2 p.m. Wednesday at Henderson Hills Baptist Church in Edmond.

Instead of flowers, the family asks donations be made to Oklahoma Concerns of Police Survivors, an organization in Norman.