CRIMINAL JUSTICE

Criminal Justice

GENDER DIFFERENCES IN THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM

Introduction

During the few years, we have seen a fundamental alteration in the way that women are dealt with in the criminal justice system of England. This has been possible because of a number of efforts by the law enforcement agencies in the country, more affirmation in the sentencing laws regarding drug use, and post-confidence barrier to reenter the field of crime, which has affect the women in a unique manner. In reaction, the thoughtfulness of an approach that is specific to a gender while analysing the policy towards criminal justice has transformed from a small footnote to a big movement for reform.

Women generally make up about 50% of the total population in different countries and only 5% of the number of prisoners. Nevertheless, in most countries the number of women prisoners is growing very rapidly, and in some regions of the world even faster than the number of male prisoners.

Criminalization of the female population was due to many factors, but is now mostly recognized the growing participation of women in different spheres of life, which influenced the emergence of new opportunities including and committing crimes. Tougher crime policy in many countries in the area of ??sentencing and the difference in approaches to handling the women in the criminal justice system has also played a role in spreading this menace of criminalization in the women. Also today, police officers, prosecutors, and judges are less likely to forgive some women, even who have committed less serious crimes. (Abel & Wiegel 2009)

Female crime is more likely than male has a high degree of latency, since they commit many crimes at home. Studies conducted in many countries have shown an increase in the number of women convicted of crimes related to drugs. Although they do not play a major role in the drug smuggling and so forth, and they are often imprisoned because of their male relatives or sexual partners, because a number of criminals their use their women sexual partners as couriers for transportation of drugs from one country to another. In the U.K., the number of women incarcerated for committing drug-related crimes jumped in the period from 1986 to 1996, while the other types of crimes grew by only a comparatively small percentage. 

We have to answer the question that who is the women, which are in prison. The most features of female prisoners are similar in different countries and, as a rule, apply equally to male prisoners as well. So, like men, women prisoners are under the age of 30 years, usually belong to a poor family, are uneducated, unskilled workers or were unemployed at the time of their arrest.  Among these women, criminals are a number of minors also.  In a number of countries, women are in prison for committing non-violent crimes, so-called "Crimes of the poor." 

Gender bias in the criminal justice system

In the criminal justice system, women and girls are especially the victims rather than perpetrators. Although women have constituted about half the victims of ...