Pubdate: Thu, 16 Mar 2006 Source: Register Citizen (CT) Copyright: 2006 Register Citizen Contact: http://www.registercitizen.com Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/598 Author: Karsten Strauss, Register Citizen Staff Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/pot.htm (Cannabis) IN BAD TASTE? PERHAPS ILLEGAL? NO, SAY OFFICIALS WINSTED -- Hemp leaves painted on a High Street home do not violate any laws, officials said. The resident of the 24 High St. home is Christopher Seek-ins, 26, who was arrested Oct. 20, 2005, by Winchester police and charged with the cultivation and possession of marijuana, possession with intent to sell and possession of drug paraphernalia. About 185 marijuana plants were found in his home, police said. "If he's the owner of the house, that's true," Deputy Chief Robert Scannell said when asked if Seekins could paint his house however he wishes. "There may be some building codes or zoning regulations regarding signage that I'm not aware of that may be violated." The painted leaves do not violate any town ordinances that Town Planner Ray Carpentino could think of, he said. "Nothing that I know of under my control," Carpen-tino said. "Just like signage regulations, we can't regulate content -- it's illegal for us to regulate content. We can regulate the size, the location, the material but somebody painting their house is beyond our planning and zoning." Zoning regulations have multiple definitions of a sign but it is basically defined as "something that advertises either a business or merchandise sold on a property or a service provided," Carpentino said. "There's nothing in the property maintenance code that it violates," Fire Marshal Joseph Beadle said. Winchester police arrived at Seekins' home last October as part of an in-home evaluation by the Northwest Mental Health Mobile Crisis Unit, police reported following Seekins' arrest. Marijuana odors were detected coming from inside the house and an investigation was conducted, they said. In a motion to dismiss charges against him in Bantam Superior Court on Jan. 12, 2006, Seekins claimed the search warrant was faulty and the arrest was therefore illegal, preventing police from taking evidence from his home. He also said they couldn't have smelled the odor over the smells emanating from a nearby restaurant. Seekins could not be reached by phone for comment Wednesday. - --- MAP posted-by: Beth Wehrman