What Role Does Gender Play In The Criminal Justice System
Discuss the role of gender in the criminal justice system
Gender brings up a number of differences within the criminal justice system, whether that be in terms of offenders, victims, types of crimes and motivations behind crimes. Some research may at times appear speculative, but the statement that men commit crime at higher rates than women is “one of the few undisputed facts in criminology” Lauritsen, J.L. Heimer, K and Lynch, J.P (2009). This can be supported by the statistics produced by the Ministry of justice (2016) which show that women in 2015 only made up around 5% of the prison population. With women being substantially underrepresented in the criminal justice system “relatively little attention has been given to them” Heidensohn, …show more content…
This statement can be supported by statistics produced by the Ministry of justice (2018) which state that on Friday the 27th of April 2018, men made up 79,808 of the 83,673 inmates in UK prisons, which is just over 95%. Men are increasingly likely to commit more serious and violent offences against the person, for example in 2015 men were more likely than women to be sentenced for the following offences: Possession of a knife, common assault, Actual bodily harm, Grievous bodily harm and drug offences (Ministry of Justice 2016). Some argue crimes like this are inevitable for men and that the motivation for such violence is embedded within society through notions such as hegemonic masculinity, a practice that promotes and legitimizes male dominance over women. In society today, it is understood that masculinity is related to violence and “Violent cultures, be they in the family, the school, the locker room, the pub, the workplace or the street, draw from, distort and exaggerate discourses from the discursive field of hegemonic masculinity “(Kenway and Fitzclarence 2010). With problematic ideas like this prevailing in society It is almost understandable as to why men encounter the criminal justice system with such violent crimes. In terms of reoffending there also appears to be gender differences, from April to June of 2016 male offenders reoffended at a rate of 30.7% compared to female offenders who reoffended at 23.3% (Ministry of Justice 2018). A study conducted in 2005 identified a number of risk factors which seem to explain why men are more prone to recidivism. “Men are more likely to return to prison because of criminal peer associations, carrying weapons, alcohol abuse and aggressive feelings” (Benda, 2005). It is revolving door offenders like this that have a problematic relationship with the criminal justice system and find themselves stuck in an unescapable cycle of
Gender brings up a number of differences within the criminal justice system, whether that be in terms of offenders, victims, types of crimes and motivations behind crimes. Some research may at times appear speculative, but the statement that men commit crime at higher rates than women is “one of the few undisputed facts in criminology” Lauritsen, J.L. Heimer, K and Lynch, J.P (2009). This can be supported by the statistics produced by the Ministry of justice (2016) which show that women in 2015 only made up around 5% of the prison population. With women being substantially underrepresented in the criminal justice system “relatively little attention has been given to them” Heidensohn, …show more content…
This statement can be supported by statistics produced by the Ministry of justice (2018) which state that on Friday the 27th of April 2018, men made up 79,808 of the 83,673 inmates in UK prisons, which is just over 95%. Men are increasingly likely to commit more serious and violent offences against the person, for example in 2015 men were more likely than women to be sentenced for the following offences: Possession of a knife, common assault, Actual bodily harm, Grievous bodily harm and drug offences (Ministry of Justice 2016). Some argue crimes like this are inevitable for men and that the motivation for such violence is embedded within society through notions such as hegemonic masculinity, a practice that promotes and legitimizes male dominance over women. In society today, it is understood that masculinity is related to violence and “Violent cultures, be they in the family, the school, the locker room, the pub, the workplace or the street, draw from, distort and exaggerate discourses from the discursive field of hegemonic masculinity “(Kenway and Fitzclarence 2010). With problematic ideas like this prevailing in society It is almost understandable as to why men encounter the criminal justice system with such violent crimes. In terms of reoffending there also appears to be gender differences, from April to June of 2016 male offenders reoffended at a rate of 30.7% compared to female offenders who reoffended at 23.3% (Ministry of Justice 2018). A study conducted in 2005 identified a number of risk factors which seem to explain why men are more prone to recidivism. “Men are more likely to return to prison because of criminal peer associations, carrying weapons, alcohol abuse and aggressive feelings” (Benda, 2005). It is revolving door offenders like this that have a problematic relationship with the criminal justice system and find themselves stuck in an unescapable cycle of