Around 11:50 p.m. on Sunday, March 29, 2020, Kirk Coker, the Sheriff of Hutchinson County, TX, died in a one-vehicle wreck.
According to the Texas Department of Public Safety, Sheriff Coker, 57, of Borger, was driving east on State Highway 136 in a 2017 Chevrolet Tahoe, about one mile east of Fritch.
The Tahoe allegedly ran off the roadway into a ditch, through a barbed wire fence and into a field where it struck a tree.
The Hutchinson County Sheriff’s Office website shows that Kirk Coker was elected as the county’s sheriff in May of 2016 and took office in 2017.
Coker was pronounced dead on scene. Officials said there was minimal damage to the vehicle and that he had been wearing his seatbelt.
In a subsequent Facebook post, the Hutchinson County Sheriff’s Office said the DPS suspects that death was due to a medical event during a call. [Still to be confirmed, at the time of writing.]
“It is with deep sadness and heavy hearts that we confirm the passing of our beloved Sheriff Kirk Coker. For those of us that were privileged to work with him, he was more than a leader. He was a friend and mentor with a heart as big as Texas. Sheriff Coker had a long and distinguished career spanning 29 years. He served the Hutchinson County Sheriff’s Office for 12.5 years, a little over 3 of those as the Sheriff,” they said.
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SOURCES:
- Hutchinson County Sheriff’s Office
- KWTX
- KXXV
See also: The Lost Lawman Memorial, Sheriffs’ Association of Texas
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I am currently in the police academy at South Plains College. I’ve selected Sheriff Coker as my silent partner. I will carry you with me through my career in law enforcement. Thank you for your service and being a man that I can look up to.