Addiction Education

Welcome to Vermillion County

VERMILLION COUNTY SHERIFF’S
Offender Educational Program
(Jail Linkage Program)

The Vermillion County Sheriff’s Office & Jail offers The Offenders Educational Program. The purpose of this program is to give selected inmates an opportunity to engage in the treatment process while incarcerated. It is intended to act as a “bridge” from the incarcerated setting to continued treatment post incarceration. It is intended for those who are likely to engage in on-going treatment and monitoring once released. It is NOT intended for those inmates likely to receive an executed sentence at the Indiana Department of Correction. It is NOT intended to take the place of a full treatment program

Prospective participants must meet the following criteria:

  • · The relevant offense must be related to alcohol or other drug activity.
    • · The prospective participant must evidence a substance abuse problem sufficient to indicate a need for treatment services.
    • · The prospective participant must agree to participate in the program for the duration of the program (minimum six weeks).
    • Participants may not be eligible for other jail programs such as trustee.
      • · Participants agree to forego the posting of bond or requests for release from custody on own recognizance or reduced bond until they have completed the program.
      • · The prospective participant must agree to the disclosure and exchange of information between and among the Court, relevant agencies, Vermillion County Prosecutor’s Office and defense counsel as necessary.
  • · The prospective participant must agree to follow recommendations of the treatment provider, following release from custody.
  • · The prospective participant must be and remain abstinent from mood altering drugs unless consent from the treatment provider is given. The prospective participant must agree to submit to random testing for illicit substances by means of urinalysis, breath testing or other approved procedures.

· The prospective participant must agree to abide by the rules and regulations of the Vermillion County Jail, the treatment provider and other relevant agencies as appropriate regarding the Jail Linkage Program services, including participation in all aspects of the Jail Linkage Program.
This program is paid for, in part, by a grant through the Local Coordinating Council for a Drug-free Vermillion County.

The Vermillion County Jail Now Offers
MORAL RECONATION THERAPY

Moral Reconation Therapy (MRT) is a systematic treatment strategy that seeks to decrease recidivism among juvenile and adult criminal offenders by increasing moral reasoning. Its cognitive-behavioral approach combines elements from a variety of psychological traditions to progressively address ego, social, moral, and positive behavioral growth. 

MRT takes the form of group and individual counseling using structured group exercises and prescribed homework assignments. The MRT workbook is structured around 16 objectively defined steps (units) focusing on seven basic treatment issues: confrontation of beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors; assessment of current relationships; reinforcement of positive behavior and habits; positive identity formation; enhancement of self-concept; decrease in hedonism and development of frustration tolerance; and development of higher stages of moral reasoning. 

Participants meet in groups once or twice weekly and can complete all steps of the MRT program in a minimum of 3 to 6 months. MRT attempts to change how drug abusers and alcoholics make decisions and judgments by raising moral reasoning as articulated in Lawrence Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development. 

MRT is one of the most widely implemented cognitive behavior programs, implemented in 40 states and several countries. MRT seeks to move clients from hedonistic (pleasure vs. pain) reasoning to levels where concern for social rules and others becomes important. Research on MRT has shown that as clients pass steps, moral reasoning increases in adult drug and alcohol as well as juvenile offenders. Controlled evaluations of MRT indicate that program participants have lower recidivism rates than controls.

In 2005, a meta-analysis of nine published outcome studies detailed the effects of MRT on recidivism in parolees and probationers. The studies found MRT cut expected recidivism by nearly two-thirds over a time period of six months to over two years. It is designed specifically for treatment resistant clients.