Political Quotes

“I rise in support of S. 1194, the Mentally Ill Offender Treatment and Crime Reduction Act. As the sponsor of H.R. 2387, the companion House bill to S. 1194, I am very pleased to have this legislation on the floor, and I would like to thank my colleagues on the Committee on the Judiciary and their staff who have been instrumental in moving this legislation. S. 1194 was introduced and shepherded through the Senate by Ohio Senator Mike DeWine, and I would like to thank him for his leadership and friendship. Senator DeWine and I have worked together to end the criminalization of the mentally ill since the 106th Congress when we introduced and passed into law a bill that established a small demonstration program to help communities begin and operate mental health courts. Response to the mental health courts program has been tremendous, with the Department of Justice receiving applications from far more communities than they could fund with the small appropriations allocated for the program. I am fortunate that two of the mental health courts grants have been awarded to jurisdictions that serve my constituents in Youngstown, Ohio and Athens, Hocking, and Vinton counties. To build on the success of the mental health courts, Senator DeWine and I introduced the bill before us today. As a counseling psychologist who has worked at a maximum security prison, I know how important this legislation is for improving mental health treatment.”