HENDRICKS COUNTY— The Hendricks County Jail is partnering with the Willow Center to offer mental health and substance abuse services to some of its inmates. The reentry program provides two dedicated “Recovery Pods” for men and women. They create a separate, supportive environment focused on recovery, healing, and growth.
“I am here four days a week. It’s Monday through Thursday, I split my time between the women’s pod and the men’s pod,” said Lynetta Laws a reentry counselor with the Willow Center.
The Willow Center offers substance abuse treatment and mental health counseling in an outpatient setting. The program at the jail started in February.
“What they’re going through, their past traumas, thing things that have brought them to their substance use we kind of work through those see where they’re missing maybe some coping skills, work through their trauma, their mental health challenges and meet them where they’re at,” said Laws.
Right now, Laws works with four inmates, two men and two women.
“I took over as Sheriff January of 2023 and this something that my staff and I have been talking about since taking over,” said Hendricks County Sheriff Jack Sadler.
Sadler says the average jail population is about 350 people and most come in having issues with substance abuse or mental health.
“Or what we call co-occuring. Unfortunately there isn’t always help for them and that’s sad,” said Sadler. “Hopefully we’ll see in the end more successful production out in the community, a safer Hendricks County and ultimately a reduction in population as we move forward.”
According to the latest numbers from the Indiana Department of Corrections, the recidivism rate in Indiana is almost 37% and in 2021 it was 36% in Hendricks County.
“We’re one of the fastest growing counties in the state. Normally with your total population of our community so does your jail population grow and I would like to not see that grow at the same rate,” said Sadler.
The Reentry Program is made possible by grant funding, so it comes at no cost to tax payers.
The goal is to grow to 20 participants. To be eligible inmates must voluntarily participate in the program, have a charge related to Substance Use, be within 45 days from being released from jail, be officially sentenced to Hendricks County.
