As a new legislative session gets underway, Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan is turning his attention toward mental health issues, and what can be done to prevent them from spiraling into devastating consequences.
On the opening day of the new General Assembly, Madigan spoke about the mass murder of students and teachers at Sandy Hook Elementary School in late 2012. A recently-issued report detailed what Madigan called "missed opportunities" to help the troubled shooter, Adam Lanza, during his school years. Madigan says it showed that additional intervention may have helped.
"We should do all that we can to prevent kids like Lanza from falling through the cracks."
Madigan says he'll form a bipartisan task force, and ask legislators and mental health professionals to give recommendations. The initiative comes even as Madigan, a Democrat, noted the tremendous budget pressures facing the state.
