Tony Mantor

I said, I have the right not to breathe your smoke.

Right.

I don't understand what part of the Disability Act that they just don't get.

Maybe they have the right to be psychotic, but we have the right to feel safe in our own community.

Yeah, I was told that the biggest hospital in the country for serious mental illness is the L.A.

County Prison.

If that is true, we really need to do something to help these people that are incarcerated.

Then merely putting them through the court system and then ultimately in jail is not helping what is the root cause of this issue.

Now, in today's world, of course, it's changed some since you were in the Senate.

Now, if you was advising a senator or a representative for legislation that's happening this year, what is it that you would prioritize to truly help the lives of the individuals and, of course, their families that we're trying to get these bills passed for?

Yeah, that is totally crazy.

In some states, and I'm not sure where Maine falls on this particular issue, one of the consistent problems I hear is there are never enough beds in the state.

And then, of course, to get those beds, they need the funding to go through.

It seems like a vicious circle.

My question, how do we stop that circle so people can get the help?

Yeah, that almost sounds like common sense.

Now, I have heard many people say that when they talk with their senators, their legislators, lawyers, any of those people, they tend to feel like they're invisible.

They feel like they do not understand what they are going through.

How can we build their confidence that their voices are actually getting heard and what they say actually means something so that we can get them the help that they need?

Yes, that's a very tough situation for sure.