Criminology - Women and Crime

There is no evidence that women are inherently (biologically) less violant than men yet all ten top serial killers are men.

Examples of Women and Crime:

• Nigella Lawson - domestic violance?
• Myra Hindley - with Ian Brady, the Moors Murders: between 1963 and 1965 killed five children and buried the bodies on Saddleworth Moor near Manchester. Brady was seen as the 'mastermind' behind the murders (fits 'pattern' of femal offending)
• Greenham Common Women's Peace Camp

Why Women and Crime?

• The rise and importance of gender perspectives and feminist criminology
• Tradditionaly criminology and the study of crime and crimminal justice was a male domai, males felt justified in ignoring women, science was a male domain 'men of science', many theories did not fit women
• "To say that you are adopting a feminist perspective in an academic disciplin...leads to puzzlement, claims there is no such thing" (Gelsthorope and Morris 1990 p2)
• The 'stag effect' (Rafter and Heidensohn, 1995)

Development of Feminist Criminology

• Uk the birthplace of feminist criminology (mid 1970's)
• Largely hostile and isolating enviroment
• Challenging male dominance
• Making female offenders visable
• Influence on theory, policy and practice - treatment of female defendents and victims, insitutionalised sexism
• Practice - **** crisis centres, refuges for abused women, understanding sex trafficking, prostitution, sex work

Key Issues

• Equality (feminist criminology is not just about women)
• Women are not waifs
• Percerptions about criminal behaviour and criminal justice processes are highly gendered
• Tradditionaly women subject ideas based on biological and physiologica determinism, reinforced by medical 'science' (women's 'deviant' behaviour linked to reproductive system, menstuation, inherent hysteria, promiscuity and madness)
• Gender ratio and 'generalizability'
• Gender ratio - why do women commit so little crime? on the feminest perspective, why do men commit so much crime?
• Generalizability - how do women fit into theories of offending? Most lack any recognition of partiarchy, gender stereotyping and bias which affect fundamentally women's lives

Two Issues:

• Women as victims of crime - violance against women
• Women as offenders - violant women

Importance of Womens Voice

• Victim blaming for **** and sexual assult. Is this fair and how do…