WOMEN, CRIME AND CRIMINAL JUSTICE

1
WOMEN, CRIME AND CRIMINAL JUSTICE

• WOMEN, POLICE AND POLICING

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.