Retired Tacoma police detective Gene Brame, the father of former Tacoma Police Chief David Brame, died Monday afternoon in his home. Brame was 81.

Gene had been in declining health in recent months and suffered a stroke a few years ago, his widow, Bev Brame, said this morning.

“He said he wanted to pass away in my arms and he did,” Bev Brame said. The two were married for nearly 61 years.

Gene Brame Sr. retired from the Tacoma Police Department as a sergeant on Aug. 7, 1979, after suffering an on-the-job disability. He was a Tacoma police officer for more than 27 years.

Gene and Bev Brame had four children. His youngest, David Brame, became Tacoma’s police chief in 2002. In April 2003, David Brame fatally shot his wife, Crystal Judson, and then himself.