Essay On Female Offenders

Historically females were seen as non-criminals as their pathways into criminality was seen to be invisible. Daly and Chesney refer this as the gender ratio problem where gender differences results in female committing less crime than male. Heidensohn states that female offenders tend to serve sentences for nonviolent offenses such as property crimes, drug-related crimes and fraud. It was only prostitution in which female were dominated. However, the female prison population has increased. The female prison population stands nearly eight times higher than its population count in 1980. This essay will discuss the social and environmental factors that might increase the likelihood of female offending. This essay will also highlight how the criminal justice system has responded to the factors, as well as female offending generally. There are many social and environmental explanations that might increase the likelihood of female offending. Some feminists claimed that the likelihood of female offending was linked to the changing roles of women. According to Steffensmeier, the new female criminal is more a social invention rather than empirical reality. As women gain more liberal and equality through the impact of women’s liberation
Not only do they receive lesser sentences for the same crime as men, ironically they are more likely to have their actions viewed deliberately. This can be evidenced in the case of prostitutes who are often victim blamed and viewed as being manipulative. This relates to the chivalry theory wherein despite the criminal justice system portraying women as criminals, they are more sympathetic and give lighter sentences in order to be courteous. This is because the criminal justice system is predominantly run by male officers, prosecutors and