dr. marlow's description is quite extraordinary. it gets right to the point of what senator blumenthal was talking about. i read that "times" article yesterday and as i mentioned i was with judge russell yesterday who initiated that first court and he's quoted in that article about that gentleman and the parameters surrounding that horrible situation where he was in the woods out in michigan with a gun and there were officers surrounding the area and felt they were being shot at. and their lives were in danger. and this veteran, this fellow is alive and is getting help now. and those officers have actually dropped all their charges as well. it's a extraordinary level of compassion and understanding what that guy alone in the woods alone was going through. he was back in iraq on three tours. he lived with that extraordinary anxiety, tension and adrenaline. we have no idea, no comprehension at all of what's that like in a combat zone and, you know, we're in three countries now where it's just every day normal life. and a lot of these

dr. marlowe. >> without objection, included in the record.let me go back to judge lafazia if you wanted to add anything to mr. sheen's remarks. i may also ask you, how has it been dealing with the veterans administration in terms of coordination with this particular means of serving veterans? >> the veterans administration has played a critical role in this project in rhode island from the beginning. they have been supportive in every step of the process, including confirming identification of veterans that they get a call from police departments to the roles they play in the courts and the services they are providing. they have been excellent on emergency care, getting people in quickly for assessment. did they have been a wonderful partner in this project. >> they get it. >> they absolutely get it. and they do play well with others and they have been cooperative and supportive and have had some initiatives they themselves have brought to the table for us. the one thing i would add to what mr. sheehan said is monday's veteran defendant are c

dr. douglas marlow. our final witness is dr. david muhlhausen.e joined heritage in 1999 after serving on the staff for the senate judiciary committee. prior to that, he was a manager at a juvenile correction facility in baltimore. he holds a doctorate in public policy from the university of maryland, baltimore county, and a bachelor's degree in political science and justice studies from frost for university. >> my name is david muhlhausen, and i am a research fellow at the heritage foundation. i think chairman whitehouse, ranking member john,, and the rest of the committee for the of the jury to testify. the views are my own, and should not be construed as the official positions of the heritage foundation. mice testimony will focus on three points -- -- my testimony will focus on three points. increase federal spending of state and local courts should not be a priority. by the end of the fiscal year, the congressional budget office warns of the federal debt will reach 70% of gross domestic product. this would be the highest percentage since short