Florida Partners in Crisis

Orlando program provides an alternative to prison that saves lives and money

March 3, 2010

Lori Brown

She's been at it nearly 30 years, but Lori Costantino Brown still hasn't lost her passion for the work of helping people overcome their drug addictions and restart their lives.

"When you see how you're making a difference in someone's life, that's where the real passion is for me," said Brown, president of The Bridges of America, one of the largest operators of drug rehabilitation programs in Florida.

One of those programs is The Orlando Bridge, a six-month residential treatment program for people charged with non-violent offenses who are on probation. For them, The Bridge is the last stop before prison.  

It is one of a network of community-based substance abuse treatment programs across the state that have proven to be effective alternatives to prison for people whose substance abuse triggered their crimes.

Clients are referred to The Orlando Bridge from Volusia, Seminole, Brevard, Osceola and Orange Counties. The average age of those enrolled is about 22 to 23 years old, Brown said.

"There are a lot of people the judges don't want to imprison because they have a primary issue of being an addict rather than being a criminal pushing drugs," she said.  "They are not a risk to the community, but, because of their drug abuse, they are reappearing in court. These are people who, with just a short intervention of six months, can turn their lives around."

"The chances are that if you going before a judge, you're looking at doing some time—probably at least a year," Brown said. "If you get into treatment, you're grateful.  You're in the community, you get to go to work, and there are no guards and no fences."

While there are no guards and fences, those enrolled in The Bridge know that if they have pending charges and fail to show up for treatment, they face being sent to jail.  

The Bridge and its parent corporation were founded by Brown's father, the late Frank Costantino, who entered the drug rehabilitation field after his own brush with drug addiction and prison.  His first drug rehabilitation venture was The Orlando Bridge, founded in 1980. 

Costantino "expanded his vision over the years," his daughter said. 

No fences or guards at The Bridge

Today, the company is the largest provider of drug treatment programs under contract to the Florida Department of Corrections, operating facilities in five locations.  Of the five, the Orlando program is the largest, with 400 individuals enrolled.  The company also operates three transitional treatment facilities and two work release programs in Florida.

Like other nonsecure substance abuse treatment programs operated under contract to DOC, The Bridge of Orlando uses a therapeutic community model that has an Intensive Treatment Component generally lasting for two months.  During this phase of treatment, the offender participates in counseling and therapeutic and educational activities at the residential facility.

An employment/re-entry component lasts four months, with the primary focus on successful transition back into the community.  During this second phase, the goal of treatment is for participants to find and keep a job in the community. The Bridges also assists clients in obtaining financial assistance and other needed services.

Participants continue to live in the treatment facility while working. They are required to participate in a minimum of six hours of counseling each week.  The program also provides aftercare services to those who have completed treatment to support their successful reintegration into the community. 

Brown is proud of what she calls the program's "phenomenal success rate." 

After 24 months, 95.8% of offenders who successfully completed the Orlando Bridge Program had not been recommitted to prison or supervision for a new offense, according to the DOC Bureau of Substance Abuse Programs.

Bret Dominguez' history is typical of many of the men who have gone through the program.

Bret Dominguez

Now 45, Dominguez said he was "in and out of trouble and on and off of drugs" for most of his life. "I lost my family, I got divorced, and I lost my business." 

"I did things to get drugs that I would never have done," Dominguez said.  "I'd wake up in the morning and remember everything I had done and I just wanted to die."  Some of those things, like stealing money from a good friend, landed him behind bars.

Later diagnosed as having bipolar disorder, he said he reached the point he didn't think he could live without drugs and didn't want to keep on living with them.

It was while in jail that Dominguez read a pamphlet about The Bridge and asked the court to send him there for treatment.

He admits that he didn't like the program at first, chafing at the strict rules and the therapy sessions that forced him to take a hard look at himself. 

But that hard look was necessary to his recovery:  "When you are facing so many demons, you need that confrontation in a safe place to learn how to deal with the day-to-day things," Dominguez said.  "If it had not been for The Bridge, I don't think I'd be here today."

He completed the program in June 2009 and says he now has a "wonderful life."

Dominguez is still on the same job he found while in the program. He said he did so well he got two raises during his first three months on the job and now has a supervisory position.  After living with family members for a while, he recently moved into his own apartment.

He goes by The Bridge from time to time to offer encouragement to others in the program.  He also helps support two families who are going through hard times financially.

There have been hundreds of successes like Dominguez at The Bridge over the years, but Brown laments that the demand for treatment outstrips available beds.

There are waiting lists for admission to The Orlando Bridge and other programs operated by the company.  Those lists have grown as state funding has been cut back in recent years.  For example, The Orlando Bridge previously was funded for 140 beds but now receives funding for only 96 beds.

"The lists are long and people are waiting for months," Brown said.

The lack of adequate treatment options concerns Brown.  "There are so many people in the community entering the system," she said.  "They're your uncles, your sisters, your neighbors." 

The numbers back her up.  According to the Department of Corrections, nearly a third of people admitted to Florida prison —11,872 in FY 2007-2008—were incarcerated for drug-related crimes.  It is estimated that approximately two-thirds of Florida’s 100,000 prison inmates have significant drug and alcohol problems.

Brown said programs like The Bridge are a less costly alternative than prison for the state.  She said The Bridge costs about $40 a day to operate, including all treatment, support services, room and board, compared to about $56 a day in a state prison.

Without successful treatment, many individuals with drug charges become repeat offenders to support their addiction.  "They are primarily using, maybe selling a small amount of drugs to finance their own addiction," Brown said.

The charges they face can quickly add up, she said. "If you reoffend and you have a second charge and come back before the court, the charges start piling up.  With the three strikes law, you can be looking at an addict doing 25 years.  If they're drugging and they are coming out of prison and re-offending, that's a very costly cycle."