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Women Offenders in the United States

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Submitted By anissa1978
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By the end of 2007, there were more than 1.27 million women in prison or jail or on parole or probation in the United States. The most common crimes for women offenders are drug related or property crimes. Education, or the lack thereof, is a major component in the incarceration of women. There are various rehabilitation programs for female inmates re-entering society, in hopes for them to become productive members of society once again. Besides the fact that they are incarcerated, there are many different emotional, health related, and family issues that women offenders have to deal with. Over the past 3 decades, the female prison population has risen 832%.Whether the motivator is money, addiction, pressure, or for self, there is a growing trend in the United States involving women, crime, and prison, and the statistics surrounding them are not only growing but disturbing. The rate of incarceration varies by race. By mid 2008 Caucasian females lead in incarceration rates over African American, Latino, and Asian offenders. An issue that was once taboo, has now become the norm. The person who was once looked upon as the backbone of the family and the household is slowly disappearing and becoming a leading statistic in our criminal justice system. When discussing criminal behavior, it was usually only seen from the crimes men committed; women offenders were rarely discussed mainly because female criminal behavior has been commonly perceived as a less serious problem than male criminal behavior. Now, women offenders are becoming more noticed in today’s society. It is fair to say that women are less likely to commit crime than men, and the crime rate in the female population tends to be relatively lower than that of the male population, whether it is due to cultural factors, role expectations, or criminal justice officials do not want to arrest a woman.

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