Former Montco & Delco Police Chief To Be Laid To Rest Friday Morning

PLYMOUTH TOWNSHIP, PA — When John Myrsiades started his career with the Plymouth Township Police Department, Carmen Pettine was a sergeant who was a year away from being promoted to lieutenant.

Myrsiades, who is now the police chief in Plymouth Township, and oversees a force of 48 sworn officers, has fond memories of working for, and with, Pettine.

"He was a good person," Myrsiades told Patch in an interview.

Pettine, who spent more than three decades working for the Plymouth Township Police Department, passed away at age 71 on Feb. 24 from complications relating to Multiple Sclerosis.

"He didn't put on any airs," Myrsiades said of Pettine. "He could laugh with somebody .... but at the same time he exuded the professionalism of a high-ranking police officer."

Pettine will be laid to rest on Friday at St. Matthew Mausoleum after a viewing and funeral at the Boyd-Horrox-Givnish Life Celebration Home in East Norriton Township.

Pettine grew up in Conshohocken and entered the U.S. Air Force after graduating from Archbishop Kennedy High School in 1968, according to his obituary. He went on to spend one tour of duty in Vietnam.

After coming home, Pettine spent two years working as a sheriff's deputy in Montgomery County before getting hired at the Plymouth Township Police Department. He went on to work there for the next 34 years and retired as chief in 2008 after spending eight years in that role.

"He was loved by the community," Myrsiades said, referencing the outpour of support on the police department's Facebook page after the announcement of Pettine's death. "He clearly made a difference in the community. His reputation definitely lives on."

Myrsiades called Pettine a "man of high integrity," and said the former chief felt he had a duty to the community, and, above all else, he "felt strongly about pushing that down through the troops."

"He led by example," Myrsiades said.

Myrsiades said Pettine was the first person in the department's history to hold every single police rank before he became chief. The only other person to reach that goal was Myrsiades himself.

After he left Plymouth, Pettine spent about eight years working as police chief in Haverford Township, Delaware County.

Longtime Haverford Police Chief John Viola told Patch that he grew very fond of Pettine when the former Plymouth chief came to Haverford in 2008 to lead that department until 2016.

"Sometimes personalities just click, and Carmen and I just clicked," Viola said. "We became fast friends and really close coworkers."

Viola, who has been with the Haverford Police Department for 52 years, called Pettine an "outstanding boss" who was very professional but also very compassionate.

"The officers all respected him for that," Viola said.

Viola called Pettine a "gem," and said Pettine, when chief, treated Viola as an equal.

"He was a teacher, a mentor and a true gentleman," he said.

After Pettine retired from Haverford in 2016, he and Viola stayed in close contact.

"I still called him for advice because he had a wealth of knowledge and he always shared it," Viola said.

Sadly, Pettine had gotten diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis later in life, and while he suffered from the debilitating disease, "he was still sharp," Viola said.

Back in Plymouth Township, Chief Myrsiades said that department plans to honor Pettine during the March 14 township commissioners meeting.

The plan, he said, is to say some words to Pettine's loved ones and express just how important he was to the police department and the greater community.

"We never forget the families of our officers," Myrsiades said.

Late Friday morning, the funeral procession is expected to pass by the Plymouth Police station, and Myrsiades said the local fire company would be draping an American flag across the roadway in honor of Pettine. This is expected to happen sometime around 11 a.m. or a little after.