NCJ Number
171400
Journal
Corrections Management Quarterly Volume: 1 Issue: 2 Dated: (Spring 1997) Pages: 44-55
Date Published
1997
Length
12 pages
Annotation
This article attempts to present a comprehensive portrait of selected women offenders.
Abstract
Women offenders are the fastest growing segment of the US prison population. The article blends two case histories drawn from a study of women in California, Florida, and Connecticut prisons with national data on women offenders in an attempt to present a comprehensive portrait of selected women offenders. The article also offers specific policy and program recommendations, and concludes that viable alternatives for women offenders and their children must be developed now, before these populations expand further. Specific recommendations include: (1) developing a strong national constituency; (2) viewing the violent victimization of women and children as a major and pervasive public health threat and a primary precursor to involvement in the criminal justice system; (3) addressing the adequacy of programs receiving high-risk girls and young women; (4) breaking the intergenerational cycle; and (5) implementing the 1995 Sentencing Project recommendations designed to reduce racial disparity in the criminal justice system. References, bibliography