Forgotten Offenders
because women have a smaller population than men and a larger % of correctional budgets are spent on male prisoners
the number of women in prison with children increased by __________ since 1991
131%
Differential Treatment
-from judges, prison administrators, and prison scholars
-prisons are fewer and smaller
-some claim "sexism
claims of sexism
-prisons are farther away from family
-small number justifies inferior and less programs
-small number justifies lesser treatment options and not properly segregating population
women are what percentage of state and federal population?
7%
growth rate has _____________men since 1995
exceeded
total number of women is around _______?
113,000
2014 BJS statistics
-During 2014, # of women incarcerated rose by 1600 (1%)
-49% are white; 22%- black. Rate of imprisonment was 113 per -100000 for black; white was 51 per 100000
-Increased from 108,800 in 2012 to 111,300 in 2014
-Population increased in 36 states- Largest
early correctional approach to women
-Prior to 1800s, men, women, children housed all together in Europe and U.S.
-Women punished like men; whippings, beatings, hangings
-Reformers in 1800s pushed for separate facilities and programs
-Even after separation, living conditions were horrendous
Elizabeth Gurney Fry
-Known as "Angel of Prisons" in England
-An English Quaker who was 1st to push for better treatment of women/children
-After visits to English prisons in 1813, she pushed for separate facilities; domestic environment; staffed by women
-Reforms ordered by
early reforms of women prisons
-Fry's efforts prompted changes
1844, Women's Prisons
-Association formed
Unlike Europe, U.S. Judges did not sentence many women to prison in 19th
-The women who got prison were considered beyond redemption
-Most were there for public order crimes
-The fe
until _______, most women were housed in men's prisons and treated the same
1870
after the meeting in 1870 of National Prison Association in Cincinnati...
this marked major changes for all corrections
Indiana Women's Prison - 1873
the first separate institution in U.S. for females....
was the 1st maximum security facility for women in U.S.
----
-Prior to this, women in Indiana were held in men's prison
-At opening of prison, only 16 offenders. That number grew quickly
-Mainly relie
Sarah J. Smith
1st superintendent of any prison in U.S.: male or female
----
she was a civil war nurse, minister, matron, prison reformer
3 principles guiding reforms:
1.Separate facilities from men
2.Provide differential care
3.Women serving as management staff
Early Women's Prisons
-Just like Penitentiaries, the women's Reformatories built in rural areas
-Most did not adopt fortress model used for men but instead "campus" style
-Most women were in for petty larceny, vice, prostitution
-Usually viewed just as errant women who needed
F.P.C Alderson
-1927- 1st federal prison for women opened in Alderson, WVA
-All federal women prisoners brought here
Sits on 500 acres; referred to as "a fashionable boarding school"
-Overriding concern was to reform; not punish
-Prisoners farmed; cooked; office work
-W
1st warder of the first federal prison for women was
Dr. Mary B. Harris
by 1935
-most women were now separated from men
-after WW2, no major correctional model developed for women
in 1940s and 1950s
just like men, rehabiliation was popular
women facilities
-Women's facilities are smaller, looser security, more open inmate-officer relationships, females less committed to code
-Serve shorter sentences; population is more fluid
Most are campus style; cottages around admin buildings
-Most lack towers and walls;
characteristics of women offenders
-70% are 25-45 YOA; � are ethnic/racial minority; 40% not completed HS
-Why do women get lesser sentences? Less serious criminal backgrounds; usually not much violence
-Some women do get long sentences
nature of offenses for women
35% are in for violent offenses (52% of males). 29%-property crimes; 27%- drug offenses
sentences of women
For all crimes, women receive shorter sentences: Average for murder is 212 months for women, 256 for men; 40 for property crimes vs. 48 for men
As of July 1, 2014
there were 59 women on death row. This constitutes 1.94% of the total death row population of 3,049 persons
Drug Use of women offenders
Use in month before recent arrest is higher among state women, more for federal men; Meth use is also higher for both state and federal
Higher % of women had symptoms of drug dependency prior to entering prison
Correctional History of women offenders
65% of women vs. 77% of males had priors before conviction; 33% were on probation at time of offense vs. 20% of males
Female Prison Sub-Culture
-Research shows most relationships are more voluntary unlike males
-A "family" style group development; father, mother, daughter, sister
-Women have less gang activity; less violence; racial tensions not as high
-Women express and fulfill social needs thr
big differences in sub-cultures
-� of males serving time for violent crimes vs. 1/3rd of women
-Women's prisons are less violent overall
-Women are more responsive to programs
-Men are divided by security levels, while women are often a mixed population
-Men tend to segregate by race, l
interpersonal relationships
-Male prisons: strength, toughness, self-sufficient, adhere to code, cope with own problems
-Women prisons: Fewer restrictions on sexual and emotional conduct; care less about status or recognition
-Violence still takes place; much lesser forms
-Women les
Sexual Misconduct
-Nearly half of all sexual assaults in U.S. jails and prisons committed by corrections officers and staff
-Defined as sexual contact with staff that is consensual and not consensual
-2.1% participate in sex with staff
82% of inmates that reported being in
education/vocation programs
-Generally lack of variety compared to men; less ambitious; less "real world"
-Most prisons do offer GED and some will have college
-1970s research showed this problem existed
-1979- Federal Court ruled that women's programs must be substantially equal
-T
medical issues
-Female inmates have more serious health issues than male; higher incidence of mental health problems
-Tend to have more reported health problems after admissions such as asthma, cancer, heart disease
-About 4% are pregnant on admission
-Most of them are
Inmates with babies/children
-60% in state prisons are mothers of minors (131,000 children)
-58% of children don't see mom during the entire sentence
-61% of inmates lived with child before incarceration; many primary caregivers
-Most children are cared for by family & friends; 11% i
Visiting with Children
-Many inmates have trouble seeing children due to distance; transportation is difficult
-Visits can be short; surroundings scary
-Some prisons are modifying rules; creating play areas for visits; allow physical contact
-Some states transport kids for over
Release
-Most inmates face difficult challenges
-Many are poor, have lost children, serious medical issues, drug abuse history
-60-70% have no place to go
-Not a recipe for success!
-Many states have transitional programs to assist them get on their feet
-Provide
More than ___________________ U.S. children
have had a parent
in prison. (This is
almost certainly an
underestimate.)
five million
Results of children of parents going to jail
a higher number of other major, potentially traumatic life events�stressors that are most
damaging when they are cumulative;
� more emotional difficulties, low school engagement, and more problems in school, among
children ages 6 to 11; and
� a greater li
More than half of
children who have
had an incarcerated
parent have also
lived with someone
who had a _______________________________ problem
substance abuse
__________________ children experience parental incarceration
one in 14
what is punishment in the eyes of prisoners
described by
prisoners included the breakdown of amenities (for example, microwaves, televisions and recreation equipment);
the denial of appropriate hygiene and personal grooming products; the removal of privileges; and the imposition
of administrative s