‘He was mighty in my world’: Mourners hail former cop Carl ‘Peewee’ Cousin as quiet hero

By Marion Filler and Kevin Coughlin

Some looked up to him like a second father. Others called him a mentor. Just about everyone considered him a friend.

Retired Morristown Police Officer Carl “Peewee” Cousin received a large and emotional sendoff Tuesday at Calvary Baptist Church. Cousin, who was 75, died earlier this month from leukemia.

“He’s the reason I became a good cop… he was almost a father figure,” said Police Chief Darnell Richardson, who as a teenager lived with Cousin’s family.

Richardson marveled at Cousin’s consistency over a career spanning four decades. Cousin did his job well, and never seemed to get mad. Richardson never heard anyone utter a bad word about him. Cousin was as approachable as he was even-keeled.

“Whenever I had a question, I called Peewee.”

Cousin’s best piece of advice to the future chief: “Treat everybody like it’s your mom. Treat everyone with respect. I’ve always tried to do that,” Richardson told Morristown Green.

Video: Service for retired Morristown Police Officer Carl ‘Peewee’ Cousin:

A lifelong Morristown resident, Cousin was a police officer from 1980 to 2007. Soon after, he came out of retirement and served as a special officer until 2022. The Army veteran also was active in the local American Legion.

Recently retired Officer Yeison de los Santos visited Cousin the night before his Aug. 11 passing. The Dominican immigrant recounted how good he felt as a young cop when Cousin referred to him as “Brother.”

“I grew up without a father, and he was like a father to me,” Santos said. “He gave me the greatest advice, he respected me, and was one of those people who believed in me…he was a great man.”

“There wasn’t anybody I knew who was afraid to go up and speak to him,” said Mayor Tim Dougherty. “Peewee always had advice, and I listened.”

‘THERE WAS A LOT OF LOVE IN THAT MAN’

Although small in size, Cousin’s nickname was an oxymoron, a nephew told mourners.

“Sometimes when giants fall, it kind of shakes your world a little bit. And he was mighty in my world,” the nephew said. He remembered Cousin’s home as a welcoming place.

“He never turned a kid away, never turned a person away from his house. There was always another chair to sit in and always another plate to eat off of,” the nephew said. “There was a lot of love in that man. There isn’t a single person in this room that he wasn’t there for, always there when you needed him the most.”

The Rev. Galindo (Glen) King testified to that in his eulogy. Cousin inspired and mentored him from prison to the pulpit.

“Devoted and kind,” Cousin above all was “a man who had the ability to balance justice and compassion, someone who can make a difference in the world,” said King, associate pastor of Bethel A.M.E. Church.

“Throughout the years, we have looked up to various superstars and athletes and influential people,” the minister continued. “You may have heard the phrase, ‘I want to be like … Oprah,” or like Elon Musk, or Barack Obama, or Serena Williams, or Beyonce.

“But considering all the wonderful characteristics of the beloved brother whose life we are celebrating today,” King said, “I want to be like Carl.”