INEQUALITY AND THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE

1
INEQUALITY AND THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE

• WOMEN

2
DEALING WITH FEMALE OFFENDERS AND VICTIMS

• HOW THE POLICE DEAL WITH FEMALE OFFENDERS
  COMPARED TO MALE OFFENDERS.
• DO THE POLICE DEAL WITH WOMEN MORE LENIENTLY?
  (CHIVALRY HYPOTHESIS)
• LESS LIKELY TO BE STOPPED AND SEARCHED
• MORE LIKELY TO RECEIVE A CAUTION COMPARED TO
  MALES-
• SEE LOUISE WESTMARLAND 2001
• HOWEVER LORRAINE GELSTHORPE (1989) - WOMEN/GIRLS
  ARE MORE LIKELY TO BE CAUTIONED FOR OFFENCES OF
  SIMILAR CIRCUMSTANCES.

3
STEREOTYPES

• REINER (1997) WOMEN SEEN AS WHORES OR WIVES
• POLICE STEREOTYPES HUDSON (1989)GOOD/ BAD
  DICHOTOMY
• POLICE CULTURE IS MASCULINE (HUNT 1984) WOMEN
  THEREFORE TREATED IN TERMS OF FEMININITY.
• TREATMENT WILL THEREFORE DEPEND ON -
• DECENT CRY /BRING CHILDREN TO THE POLICE STATION
  GENUINE
• ROUGH CRY/BRING CHILDREN TO THE POLICE STATION
  MANIPULATIVE SEEN AS NON WOMEN ESPECIALLY
  THOSE WHO HAVE BEEN PHYSICALLY VIOLENT OR
  INVOLVED IN DRUGS
• (HORN (1995) TEMPORARILY OFFENDED)

4

• WOMEN NOT SEEN AS NATURAL CRIMINALS (LOMBROSSO
  AND FERRERO 1895)
• THEREFORE WOMEN ARE SEEN AS MORE TRUSTWORTHY
  COMPARED TO MALE OFFENDERS. THEREFORE POLICE HAVE
  GREATER EXPECTATIONS IN RELATION TO
  REHABILITATION
• PROSTITUTION (NOT REAL WOMEN) HEIDENSOHN 1996
• PROSTITUTES COMPLAIN OF THEIR HARSH TREATMENT BY
  THE POLICE(CPS LONDON 2003)
• ALSO AFRICAN CARIBBEAN WOMEN CHARGES ARE BEING
  INAPPROPRIATELY BROUGHT BY THE POLICE, WITHOUT
  SUFFICIENT EVIDENCE OR THE PROSPECT OF OBTAINING
  EVIDENCE (CPS 2003)

5
Within the police service

• CULT OF MASCULINITY (SMITH AND GRAY1985)
• WOMEN ARE MASCULINISED (HUNT 1984) DYKES/WPOs
  AND WHORES/OFFENDERS
• WOMEN POLICE OFFICERS ARE THE VICTIMS OF SEXUAL
  DISCRIMINATION (CAROL MARTIN 1996)
• WOMEN HAVE BEEN IN THE POLICE SERVICE SINCE 1916
  YET NOT PROMOTED AS FREQUENTLY AND SLOW IN
  GETTING EQUAL PROFESSIONAL STATUS
• LESS THAN 19 OF POLICE FORCE FEMALE (HOME
  OFFICE 2004)

6

• GLASS CEILING HIGH PROFILE POSITIONS GO TO MALES
  (JENNY BROWN DISCRIMINATORY EXPERIENCES OF WOMEN
  POLICE (2000)
• THE WORK OF POLICING, AND BY IMPLICATION THE
  LIVES OF POLICE OFFICERS,IS STRUCTURED TO
  ACCOMMODATE A MALE CHRONOLOGY OF CONTINUOUS AND
  UNINTERRUPTED EMPLOYMENT (SILVESTRI 2003)
• UNTIL RECENTLY WOMEN DISADVANTAGED BY THE FITNESS
  TEST WHICH EMPHASISES UPPER BODY STRENGTH
• 44 MALE CHIEF CONSTABLES COMPARED TO 3 FEMALE
  (HOME OFFICE 2001)
• 1IN 5 POLICE CONSTABLES
• LESS THAN 1IN 10 CHIEF POLICE OFFICERS (BAWP
  BRITISH ASSOCIATION OF WOMEN POLICING 2004)

7

• HOWEVER MEN ARE MORE LIKELY TO APPLY FOR
  PROMOTION(BROWN AND HEIDENSOHN (2000)
• UNTIL THE COMPOSITION OF THE FORCE MORE CLOSELY
  RESEMBLES THE GENERAL POPULATION IN TERMS OF
  GENDER, RACE AND SEXUALITY, STEREOTYPICAL VIEWS
  HELD BY POLICE OFFICERS ABOUT WOMEN AND MINORITY
  GROUPS ARE LIKELY TO PERSIST (GREGORY AND LEES
  1999)
• CASE STUDY ALISON HALFORD.

8
COURTS

• TREATMENT OF WOMEN CHIVALRY FACTOR OR DOUBLY
  DEVIANT
• DATA SUGGESTS THAT COURTS ARE MORE LENIENT TO
  WOMEN COMPARED TO MEN
• WOMEN ARE UNDERREPRESENTED IN THE CRIMINAL
  JUSTICE STATISTICS
• 4359 FEMALES IN PRISON ON 9TH FEB 2007 ( NOMS)
• LOWER PROPORTION OF WOMEN THAN MEN SENTENCED TO
  IMMEDIATE CUSTODY FOR INDICTABLE OFFENCES (PTR
  2000)
• IS THERE BIAS OPERATING IN FAVOUR OF OR AGAINST
  WOMEN?

9

• FACTORS INFLUENCING THE CHIVALRY FACTOR
• 1 WOMEN RUNNING THE HOME
• 2 CARING FOR DEPENDENTS
• 3 PREGNANCY ETC
• WOMENS CRIME ASSOCIATED WITH MEDICAL PROBLEMS
  MENTAL ILLNESS PMT PND

10

• WOMEN ARE FAR LESS LIKELY (THAN MEN ) TO RECEIVE
  A CUSTODIAL SENTENCE FOR VIRTUALLY ALL INDICTABLE
  OFFENCES (EXCEPT DRUGS)
• WOMENS PRISON SENTENCES ARE SHORTER THAN MENS
  (PTR 2000)
• PROPORTIONATE USE OF IMMEDIATE CUSTODY
• MALES OVER 21 30
• FEMALES OVER 21 17 (HOME OFFICE 2003)
• HOME DETENTION CURFEW 2001 41 OF WOMEN ELIGIBLE
  RELEASED COMPARED TO 24 MALES (COUNCELL AND
  OLAGUNDOYE 2003)
• WOMEN LESS LIKELY TO BE DEALT WITH AT CROWN
  COURTS

11
DOUBLY DEVIANT

• WOMEN WHO OFFEND WILL BE TREATED MORE HARSHLY
  THAN CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM
• OFFENDED NOT ONLY AGAINST LAW BUT ALSO AGAINST
  THE NATURE AND SOCIAL NORMS AROUND GENDER.
• MEN WHO ARE REBELLIOUS AGAINST THE LAW ARE
  EXHIBITING MASCULINE BEHAVIOUR.
• (ANN LLOYD CHIVALRY DOES EXIST BUT ONLY IN
  RESPECT OF THOSE WHO ARE SEEN TO CONFORM)
• EG VIOLENT WOMEN ARE UNNATURAL (MORE LIKELY TO BE
  REFFERRED FOR PSYCHAITRIC TREATMENT)
• BELKNAP(2001) ARGUES THERE EXISTS A BARTERING
  SYSTEM
• RESPECTIBILITY WILL DETERMINE SENTENCING
  MITIGATING CIRCUMSTANCE

12

• IMPRISONED FOR LESS SERIOUS OFFENCES
• 33 OF WOMEN IN PRISON HAVE NO PREVIOUS
  CONVICTIONS COMPARED TO 15 MALES (Easton and
  Piper 2005)
• FARRINGTON AND MORRIS (1983)MARITAL STATUS,
  FAMILY BACKGROUND AND CHILDREN MORE IMPORTANT
  WHERE WOMEN ARE CONCERNED COMPARED TO MEN
• HOWEVER DIVORCED/SEPARATED, OR FROM A DEVIANT
  FAMILY BACKGROUD MORE LIKELY TO RECEIVE SEVERER
  SENTENCES
• COURTS- DISTINGUISHING BETWEEN GOOD AND BAD
  MOTHERS. PRISON FOR FAILED MUMS ( CARLON
  (1983)
• ALSO SEE WORRALL (1990) CUSTODIAL SENTENCE FOR
  WOMEN WHO HAVE CHILDREN IN CARE AND YOUNG WOMEN
  OUT OF CONTROL
• A QUESTION OF CLASS?
• WOMEN WHO BREAK THE LAW COME FROM ALL KINDS OF
  BACKGROUNDS...THOSE WOMEN WHO LAND UP IN PRISON
  ARE MUCH MORE LIKELY TO HAVE COME FROM THE LOWER
  SOCIO-GROUPS THAN FROM THE HIGHER ONES (CARLEN
  ET AL 1985)
• 61 HAD NO EDUCATIONAL QUALIFICATIONS (SOCIAL
  EXCLUSION UNIT 2002)

13
WOMEN IN THE LEGAL PROFESSION

• IS THERE EQUAL ACCESS TO AND OPPORTUNITY IN THE
  LEGAL PROFESSION?
• DISPROPORTIONATE REPRESENTATION LACK OF
  REPRESENTATION OF WOMEN IN THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE
  INSTITUTIONS
• WOMEN FAIL TO BE REPRESENTED AT TOP LEVEL OF
  PROFESSION
• EARN LESS THAN MALE COUNTERPARTS

14
PRISON

• PRISONS
• WOMEN IN PRISON 4359 9TH FEB 2007 (NOMS)
• 195 RISE IN FEMALE PRISON NUMBERS SINCE OVER
  LAST TEN YEARS
• SURVIVAL CRIME
• OVER HALF THE RISING PRISON POP ARE INCARCERATED
  FOR SURVIVAL CRIME
• IN 1993 FINE DEFAULTERS 37 (1997 NATIONAL
  ASSOCIATION OF PROBATION OFFICERS)
• PRISON POPULATION 80 UNEMPLOYED OR ON BENEFIT
• 35 OF FIRST OFFENDERS GIVEN JAIL SENTENCES
  COMPARED TO 12 OF MEN

15
PRISON ENVIRONMENT

• PENAL ESTABLISHMENTS FOR WOMEN LESS PHYSICALLY
  UNPLEASANT THAN MENS
• HOWEVER IN SOME RESPECTS WORSE- LONG DISTANCE
  FROM HOME/ FAMILY (SEE GUARDIAN 2002)
• 40 WOMEN IN PRISON DRUG USERS (GUARDIAN 2002)
• CARLEN (2002) DIFFERENT IMPACT OF SENTENCES ON
  WOMEN COMPARED TO MEN
• HIEDENSOHN (1985) PRISONS ARE MORE TRAUMATIC FOR
  WOMEN-VIOLENCE AND SELF MUTILATION

16

• POLARISED BETWEEN PROBATION AND PRISON, WOMEN
  ARE LEAST LIKELY TO BE OFFERED AN ALTERNATIVE TO
  CUSTODYDAY CENTERS(FOR EXAMPLE) WERE CREATED IN
  THE IMAGE OF HARD MENNOT SEEN AS A PROPER PLACE
  FOR WOMENBECAUSE THEY ARE NOT SEEN AS DANGEROUS
  THERES NO PLACE BUT PRISON (CAMPBELL 1985)