Political Capitol

Scott Merrell, the so-called Rowayton Cowboy, was at the capitol Friday sitting patiently in a hearing room, his trademark cowboy hat on his lap, awaiting his turn to testify in favor of legislation making marijuana possession an infraction, not a crime.

Merrell of Norwalk’s seaside Rowayton village is a Republican running for Governor, although you’d never know it. The guy hasn’t started raising any money. And he’s not exactly doing things that would earn him the nomination of any major party, like paying taxes and avoiding arrest (you can read the latest on Merrell’s ongoing battle with Norwalk at the end of this post).

So the whole wanting to decriminalize marijuana thing is probably not going to be the issue that makes or breaks Merrell’s shot at replacing retiring Republican Gov. M. Jodi Rell.

Merrell, during a brief conversation Friday, said current marijuana laws only make the drug more appealing, particularly to teenagers.

“Think of it this way. When you make something illegal it’s got a reverse effect. It’s the forbidden fruit,” Merrell said.

For the same reasons he’d like to also lower the drinking age to 18 – something several college presidents nationwide began lobbying for in 2008.

Merrell believes that the resources spent on enforcing marijunana laws would be better spent fighting violent crimes and cracking down on the use of more dangerous drugs.

As for his bid for Governor, Merrell hopes to be asked to participate in some future debates (he missed last Thursday’s televised GOP face-off) and acknowledged he should probably start fundraising soon.

“The one thing I don’t like about politics is asking people for money,” Merrell said. “I wish I was a millionaire and I’d just spring it myself.”

Here’s the latest on Merrell’s legal issues, courtesy of colleague John Nickerson:

Feb. 26–NORWALK — Scott Merrell came to court Thursday to face a first-degree trespassing charge he incurred when he refused to leave his multimillion-dollar Wilson Point home three weeks ago during his eviction by a state marshal.

The gun, a Norinco .556 mm rifle with a collapsible stock, pistol grip, bayonet and three empty banana clips were found when movers began emptying out his 4,000-square-foot waterfront home on Feb. 2, according to a police report.

On the night of the eviction, State Marshal Edmund Keith Makowski turned the rifle over to police with a handgun and more than 200 bullets, according to Merrell’s two-page arrest affidavit. No bullets were found for the rifle, the affidavit said.

During his arraignment Thursday, Judge Maureen Dennis released Merrell on a conditional promise to appear and prohibited him from owning any weapons while released on the charge.

During his arraignment on the new charge, Merrell, who calls himself the “Rowayton Cowboy,” told Dennis he was working to hire an attorney to represent him.

According to the arrest affidavit, the Rowayton native told police that he bought the weapon in California 10 years ago and transported it to Connecticut for no particular purpose.

Merrell was supposed to register the weapon when he brought it into the state, the affidavit said.

Merrell, who ran unsuccessfully for Norwalk mayor in the last two elections and said last year he would seek the Republican nomination for governor this year, lost his rundown Tudor-style home at a city tax auction because of a delinquent $110,000 city property tax bill.

His Woodland Road home with views of Long Island Sound was sold at a city tax sale in July 2008 for $725,000. The city values it at more than $4 million.

The former California racetrack veterinarian was unable, or unwilling, to pay the overdue tax bill and save the home that sits on nearly an acre in exclusive Wilson Point.

Merrell, who bought the home in 1990 for $785,000, owned the property free and clear. City taxes on the property are $59,000 per year.

Merrell is scheduled to appear in court March 25