Although many expressed shock that publisher Philip Merrill apparently committed suicide, people close to Merrill said he showed signs of depression in the final weeks of his life.
“He wasn?t beside himself,” but he exhibited uncharacteristic lethargy, said Tom Marquardt, the executive editor of The (Annapolis) Capital, one of the newspapers Merrill?s company owned.
Merrill had heart surgery about a year ago and was taking about four or five different heart medications, according to Marquardt. His family understood that many people go through depression after heart surgery and urged Merrill to visit a doctor, Marquardt said.
“I don?t think at any point did they ever think it had reached the level of contemplating suicide,” he said.
Some medication for heart disease is known to cause depression, said Harry A. Brandt, head of the department of psychiatry at St. Joseph Medical Center in Baltimore.
The Natural Resources Police were in touch with the Merrill family from the beginning of the investigation and “at some point after the body was discovered,” the family concluded the death was likely a suicide, Marquardt said.
Autopsy results would be released on Friday at the earliest, said Cindy Feldstein, a spokeswoman for the medical examiner.
Steve Crane, assistant dean of the University of Maryland?s Philip Merrill College of Journalism, said Merrill?s legacy will not be compromised by the manner of his death
“Years from now what will be remembered about him is that he cared about journalism … that he cared about the environment,” he said “He established a system under which those could flourish … that is and will be his legacy.”
