U.S. Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs Bureau of Justice Statistics Revised 12/15/99 and 10/03/00 December 1999, NCJ 175688 Lawrence A. Greenfeld and Tracy L. Snell BJS Statisticians ------------------------------Highlights---------------------------------- Violent All Convicted felony Correctional Women offenders offenders arrestees defendants populations Number 2,135,000 3,171,000 160,500 951,900 As a percent of each category 14% 22% 16% 16% * Based on the self-reports of victims of violence, women account for about 14% of violent offenders -- an annual average of about 2.1 million violent female offenders. * Male offending equals about 1 violent offender for every 9 males age 10 or older, a per capita rate 6 times that of women. * Three out of four violent female offenders committed simple assault. * An estimated 28% of violent female offenders are juveniles. * Three out of four victims of violent female offenders were women. * Nearly 2 out of 3 victims had a prior relationship with the female offender. * An estimated 4 in 10 women committing violence were perceived by the victim as being under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs at the time of the crime. * The per capita rate of murder offending by women in 1998 was the lowest recorded since 1976; the rate at which women commit murder has been declining since 1980. * In 1998 there were an estimated 3.2 million arrests of women -- accounting for about 22% of all arrests that year. The per capita rate of arrest among juvenile females was nearly twice the adult female rate. * Since 1990 the number of female defendants convicted of felonies in State courts has grown at more than 2 times the rate of increase in male defendants. * In 1998 an estimated 950,000 women were under the care, custody, or control of correctional agencies -- probation or parole agencies supervising 85% of these offenders in the community. The total equals a rate of about 1 woman involved with the criminal justice system for every 109 adult women in the U.S. Population. * Women under supervision by justice system agencies were mothers of an estimated 1.3 million minor children. * Nearly 6 in 10 women in State prisons had experienced physical or sexual abuse in the past; just over a third of imprisoned women had been abused by an intimate in the past; and just under a quarter reported prior abuse by a family member. * About 84,000 women were confined in prisons in 1998. In 1996 the average sentence and time served for women were shorter than for males with equivalent offenses. --------------------------------End of Highlights----------------- Population estimates from the Census Bureau for July 1, 1998, indicate that women account for more than half the population age 10 or older: Table 1 Both genders 230,861,000 100.0% Females 119,010,000 51.6 Males 111,851,000 48.4 The racial and ethnic composition of the general population age 10 or older varies slightly when males and females are compared. Non-Hispanic black females outnumber non-Hispanic black males by nearly 1.9 million, accounting for more than a quarter of the total difference in the number of males and females in the general population. Minorities compose a slightly higher percentage of the female population (26.2%) than of the male population (25.9%). Nearly a third of the disparity in the number of females versus males in the general population is accounted for by the larger number of minority females. The average age of females in the general population is about 2½ years older than that of males. The largest age disparity, about 3 years, is found among black non-Hispanic females compared to black non-Hispanic males. Among females, Hispanic women have the lowest average age, 29.6 years, while white non-Hispanic women have the highest, 39.6 years. Table 2 Gender, race, and Hispanic origin in the U.S. population Percent of U.S. population age 10 or older, 1998 Females Males White Hispanic 8.8% 9.5% Non-Hispanic 73.8 74.1 Black Hispanic 0.6% 0.6% Non-Hispanic 12.1 11.2 Asian/Pacific Islander Hispanic 0.2% 0.2% Non-Hispanic 3.6 3.5 American Indians/Alaska Natives Hispanic 0.1% 0.1% Non-Hispanic 0.7 0.7 Total population 119,010,000 111,851,000 ---------------------- Violent victimizers During an average year, based on the period 1993-97, victims of violence attributed the crimes they experienced to an estimated 2.1 million female violent offenders and 13.1 million male violent offenders. ----------------------------------------------- Table 3 Violent crimes committed by females and males Average annual number Women as of offenders reported a percent by victims, 1993-97 of violent Offense Female Male offenders All 2,135,000 13,098,000.00 14% Sexual assault 10,000 442,000 2 Robbery 157,000 2,051,000 7 Aggravated assault 435,000 3,419,000 11 Simple assault 1,533,000.00 7,187,000.00 18 ----------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------- Table 4 Offending rates: Ratio of Number of offenders offending per 1,000 residents rates, Male Female male:female 1993 135 19 7.1 1994 140 20 7.0 1995 124 19 6.4 1996 107 19 5.7 1997 99 15 6.5 --------------------------------------------------------- About 1 out of 7 violent offenders described by victims was a female. Women accounted for 1 in 50 offenders committing a violent sex offense including rape and sexual assault, 1 in 14 robbers, 1 in 9 offenders committing aggravated assault, and more than 1 in 6 offenders described as having committed a simple assault. Nearly 3 in 4 violent victimizations committed by female offenders were simple assaults; just over half the violence of male offenders is described as simple assault. The rate of male violent offending translated into about 1 violent offender for every 9 males age 10 or older in the general population; the rate of female violent offending was equal to about 1 violent offender for every 56 females age 10 or older. Per capita rates of offending among both males and females decreased from the peak rates recorded in 1994. Rates of committing violent crime in 1997 were 29% lower for males and 25% lower among females. Characteristics of violent female offenders Figure 1 Race of female offender Offense White Black Other Violent offenses 55% 35% 11% Robbery 43 43 14 Assault Aggravated 45 46 10 Simple 58 31 10 More than half of female violent offenders were described by victims as white, and just over a third were described as black. About 1 in 10 were described as belonging to another race (Asian, Pacific Islander, Native Hawaiian, American Indian, Aleut, or Eskimo). Black and white offenders accounted for nearly equal proportions of women committing robbery and aggravated assault; however, simple assault offenders were more likely to be described as white. Among violent female offenders, 53% committed the offense while alone, and 40% were with others, all of whom were female. Among male offenders, 47% were alone, and 51% were with other males when the offense occurred. About 8% of violent female offenders committed their offense together with at least one male offender; by contrast, about 1% of male violent offenders committed the offense in the company of a female offender. Figure 3 Age of Percent of violent offenders female offenders Under 12 2% 12-14 14 15-17 12 18-20 10 21-29 25 30 or older 38 Victims of violence provided very similar descriptions of their perceptions of the ages of both female and male violent offenders. For each age group -- juveniles, young adults, and those 30 or older -- victims reported little variation in offender age between the two genders. Juveniles accounted for about 28% of female violent offenders, nearly identical to the juvenile percentage (26%) found among violent male offenders. Characteristics of victims of female violent offenders Overall, female-to-female violence accounted for 11% of all violent offenders described by victims. An additional 3% of violent offenders were women who attacked males. ---------------------------------------------------- Table 5 Percentage of all violent victimizations reported by victims Gender of violent offender Gender of victim Female Male Total Total 14% 86% 100% Female 11 26 37 Male 3 60 63 ---------------------------------------------------- Violent offenders most often victimized persons of the same gender. More than 3 out of 4 female offenders had a female victim; about 7 out of 10 males had a male victim. About 29% of violent offenders had a victim of a different gender; 9 out of 10 of these offenders were males with female victims. Figure 4 Victim-offender Female Male relationship offenders offenders Intimate 6% 7% Relative 7 3 Acquaintance 49 27 Stranger 38 64 Male and female violent offenders differed substantially in their relationship to those they victimized. An estimated 62% of female violent offenders had a prior relationship with the victim as an intimate, relative, or acquaintance. By contrast, about 36% of male violent offenders were estimated to have known the victim. Victims who were intimates accounted for an identical percentage of both male and female violent offenders. Figure 5 Female offenders Victim-offender Female Male relationship victims victims Intimate 1% 29% Relative 7 7 Acquaintance 55 26 Stranger 37 39 When women committed their violent offense against men, 35% of the offenders attacked an intimate or relative. By contrast, 8% of victimizations of other females involved intimates or family members. For both male and female victims, the proportion of female offenders attacking strangers was the same. Where offenders committed violence and use of drugs or alcohol Figure 6 Female Male Location of violence offenders offenders At/near victim's home 26% 21% School 20 10 Open area 18 26 Work 12 15 Commercial area 12 13 Other 12 15 For nearly half of female offenders, the violent offense took place either at or near the victim's home or at school. Less than a third of male offenders carried out their crimes in these locations. According to victim self-reports, female offenders account for about 1 in 4 offenders committing violence at a school. Women were also estimated to account for about 1 in 8 violent offenders in the workplace and 1 in 6 violent offenders committing the offense in the victim's home. Figure 7 Victim's perception of offender's use of alcohol or drugs at the Female Male time of the violence offenders offenders Neither 61% 60% Any 39 40 Both 8 10 Alcohol only 19 25 Drugs only 11 6 There were few differences between male and female violent offenders in victim perceptions of drug or alcohol use at the time of the offense. About 4 in 10 male and female violent offenders were reported by victims to have been using alcohol, drugs, or both at the time of the offense. Consequences of female violence ---------------------------------------------------------- Table 6 Offenders Female Male Use of a firearm, knife, blunt object 15% 28% Victim seriously injured 5 8 Hospital treatment for victim 5 6 Average loss to victim $595 $943 ------------------------------------------------------------- The consequences of male violence were generally more serious for the victim in terms of weapon use, injury, and out-of-pocket losses to the victim. Male offenders were more likely than female offenders (28% to 15%) to have used a weapon such as a blunt object, knife, or firearm in the commission of the violent offense. Serious injuries, such as broken bones, being knocked unconscious, concussions, knife wounds, or gunshot wounds, were slightly more associated with male offenders; however, the likelihood of hospital treatment for the victims of male and female offenders was about the same. An estimated 865,000 violent offenders were responsible for crimes against victims whose injuries resulted in hospital treatment; women accounted for about 12% of these offenders. The largest out-of-pocket cost item for victims of female violence was medical expenses which averaged $1,127, nearly $550 less than victims of male violence experienced. Lost pay due to injury to victims of female violence averaged $311 and lost pay for court appearances and other reasons cost victims an average of $513 when the offender was a female -- both of these were less than half the losses victims experienced when the offender was a male. Women who murder Since 1993 both male and female rates of committing murder have declined. Rates of committing murder in 1998 were the lowest since statistics were first collected in 1976. The estimated rate for murder offending by women in 1998 was 1.3 per 100,000 -- about 1 murderer for every 77,000 women. The male rate of murder offending in 1998 was 11.5 per 100,000, about 1 murderer for every 8,700 males. The 1998 rate of committing murder by women was just over 40% of the rate in 1976. Since 1980 rates for women have been steadily declining. For male offending, the peak rate occurred in 1991, with 20.7 murderers per 100,000 males (about 1 murderer for every 4,800 males); the rate in 1998 was just over half of what it had been in 1991. ------------------------------------------ Table 7 Murderers Victim Female Male Spouse 28.3% 6.8% Ex-spouse 1.5 0.5 Child/stepchild 10.4 2.2 Other family 6.7 6.9 Boyfriend/girlfriend 14.0 3.9 Acquaintance 31.9 54.6 Stranger 7.2 25.1 Number, 1976-97 59,996 395,446 ------------------------------------------- The victim-offender relationship differed substantially between female and male murderers. Of the 60,000 murders committed by women between 1976 and 1997 just over 60% were against an intimate or family member; among the 400,000 murders committed by men over the same period, 20% were against family members or intimates. An estimated 1 in 14 murders by a female offender and 1 in 4 murders by a male offender was committed against a victim who was a stranger to the offender. ----------------------------------------- Table 8 Female murderers Victim White Black 13 or younger 0.6% 0.6% 14-17 6.4 5.3 18-24 23.9 26.9 25-34 31.0 36.5 35-49 27.2 23.1 50-64 8.8 6.3 65 or older 2.2 1.4 Number, 1976-97 26,485 35,357 ---------------------------------------- Between 1976 and 1997, juveniles accounted for just over 6% of the murders committed by female offenders, or approximately 4,000 murders. In 1976 there were an estimated 226 juvenile female murderers compared to an estimated 153 in 1997. The only group of women for whom the rate of murder offending has not continued to decrease are those age 18-24. The per capita rate of committing murder for women of this age reached its lowest point in 1995, and by 1997 had climbed 25%. Figure 8 Murderers per 100,000 residents Male Female Female rate rate rate x 5 1976 16.3 3.1 15.5 16.2 3.0 15.0 16.8 2.8 14.0 18.6 2.9 14.5 1980 20.6 3.1 15.5 18.9 2.9 14.5 17.4 2.8 14.0 15.8 2.6 13.0 15.2 2.3 11.5 1985 15.2 2.2 11.0 16.5 2.3 11.5 16.0 2.2 11.0 16.8 2.2 11.0 17.4 2.1 10.5 1990 19.6 2.2 11.0 20.7 2.2 11.0 19.3 1.9 9.5 19.9 2.0 10.0 18.8 1.9 9.5 1995 17.2 1.6 8.0 15.5 1.7 8.5 14.2 1.5 7.5 1998 11.5 1.3 6.5 Nearly 6 in 10 female murderers are black. The age distribution of white and black female murderers is quite similar, though among older offenders (50 or older) black females account for less than half of female murderers. ----------------------------------------------- Table 9 Murderers Female Male Handgun 42% 51% Other firearm 11 16 Knife 31 18 Blunt object 4 6 All other weapons 12 9 --------------------------------------------------------- Just over half of women committing murder and two-thirds of males committing murder used a firearm. Female offenders were substantially more likely than male murderers to have used a knife or other sharp object to commit the crime. --------------------------------------------------------- Parents who kill Between 1976 and 1997 parents and stepparents murdered nearly 11,000 children. Mothers and stepmothers committed about half of these child murders. Sons and stepsons accounted for 52% of those killed by mothers and 57% of those killed by fathers. Mothers were responsible for a higher share of children killed during infancy while fathers were more likely to have been responsible for the murders of children age 8 or older. --------------------------------------------------------- Arrests In 1998 there were an estimated 3.2 million arrests of women, accounting for about a fifth of all arrests by law enforcement agencies. Women were about 17% of those arrested for the Part I violent crimes (murder, rape, robbery, and aggravated assault) and 29% of those arrested for Part I property crimes (burglary, larceny, and motor-vehicle theft). An estimated 22% of all female arrests (Part I and Part II) were of juveniles -- about 700,000 juvenile female arrests in 1998. Juvenile female arrestees accounted for a higher percentage of women arrested for motor vehicle theft, liquor law violations, and vandalism. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Table 10 Arrests of females, 1998 Female arrest rate per Arrests of females 100,000 female residents 1998 Percent of all arrests Juvenile Adult Total arrests 3,170,520 22% 4,630 2,377 Violent offenses 113,877 17% 126 91 Murder 1,959 11 1 2 Robbery 12,130 10 19 9 Aggravated assault 99,490 20 106 80 Property offenses 521,894 29% 1,109 341 Burglary 41,177 13 85 27 Larceny 453,277 35 953 297 Motor vehicle theft 23,585 16 61 14 Drug offenses 272,073 18% 186 235 Driving under the influence 219,514 16 24 208 Note: Violent offenses, which include rape, and property offenses are the Part I offenses In the FBI Uniform Crime Reports. Total arrests includes Part I and Part II offenses. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The numbers of arrests in 1998 translate into about 1 arrest for every 22 female juveniles (age 10-17) and 1 arrest for every 42 adult women (age 18 or older). For Part I violent crimes, there was 1 arrest of a female juvenile for every 794 girls in the general population and 1 arrest of an adult female for every 1,099 adult women residents. Larceny, the offense category with the most arrests, equaled about 1 arrest for every 105 girls under age 18 and 1 arrest for every 337 women age 18 or older. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Table 11 Felony convictions of women in State courts, 1990-96 Estimated number of women convicted of felonies in State courts Percent change, 1990 1992 1994 1996 1990-96 Total 112,800 120,550 131,404 160,470 42% Violent felonies 10,428 12,313 13,936 13,509 30% Murder 1,051 1,205 1,289 1,005 -4 Rape/sexual assault 202 375 630 442 119 Robbery 3,047 3,142 2,854 2,920 -4 Aggravated assault 5,043 6,152 6,906 7,786 54 Other violent 1,085 1,440 2,256 1,356 25 Property felonies 48,206 52,230 53,649 69,536 44% Burglary 5,593 5,830 6,603 6,847 22 Larceny 20,728 22,179 22,136 28,786 39 Fraud 21,885 24,221 24,910 33,902 55 Drug felonies 43,000 42,047 46,468 59,027 37% Trafficking 24,562 23,529 25,561 33,005 34 Possession 18,438 18,518 20,907 26,022 41 Other felonies 11,166 13,959 17,351 18,399 65% Note: Murder includes nonnegligent manslaughter; larceny includes motor vehicle theft; and fraud include forgery and embezzlement. Details may not equal totals because of rounding. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- In 1998 there were more than a quarter million female drug arrests, accounting for about 18% of all arrests for drug law violations. Drug arrest rates in 1998 were 1 for every 538 juvenile females in the resident population and 1 for every 426 adult women residents. Per capita arrest rates for Part I violent crimes among juvenile females (17 and younger) and among young adult females (18-24) have risen substantially from the early 1980's. The juvenile arrest rate for violent offenses in 1995 was about 22 times the rate in 1985. However, juvenile rates have declined in each year since 1995. By contrast, young adult female rates of arrest for violence continue to climb with the 1997 rate about 80% above the rate 10 years earlier and at the highest level recorded. Female defendants in State courts Women accounted for about 16% of all felons convicted in State courts in 1996. Women were 8% of convicted violent felons, 23% of property felons, and 17% of drug felons. Women defendants accounted for 41% of all felons convicted of forgery, fraud, and embezzlement. The majority of male and female felony defendants in the 75 largest counties in the United States were either charged with violence or were recidivists. An estimated 27% of male and 42% of female felony defendants in State courts in large counties had no history of prior convictions and had not been charged with a violent offense. State courts have recorded substantial growth in the number of female defendants convicted of felonies. Between 1990 and 1996, the number of convicted female defendants grew at 22 times the rate of increase among male defendants. For women defendants convicted in State courts, nearly 90% of the increase in the number of violent felons was accounted for by aggravated assault, perhaps reflecting increased prosecution of women for domestic violence. More than half of the increase in the number of female defendants convicted of property felonies was attributable to rising numbers of those convicted of forgery, fraud, or embezzlement. ---------------------------------------------- Table 12 Trends in felony convictions of women and men, 1990-96 Percent change in the number of felony convictions, 1990-96 Felonies Total Females Males All 20% 42% 17% Violent 14 30 12 Property 6 44 -2 Drug 27 37 25 Other 46 65 44 ---------------------------------------------- Thirty-seven percent of women convicted of a felony in State courts in 1996 had been charged with a drug offense, about the same proportion of all convicted felons as in 1990. Over the period 1990-96, the number of drug trafficking convictions grew by 34% and the number of convictions for drug possession increased 41%. For every category of major crime for the period 1990-96 -- violent, property, drugs, and other felonies -- the rate of increase in the number of convicted female defendants has outpaced the changes in the number of convicted male defendants. Property felonies, in particular, have evidenced a very large disparity in rates of change; from 1990 to 1996, the number of males convicted of property felonies dropped about -2% while convicted female defendants increased 44%. --------------------- Adjudication outcomes About two-thirds of both female and male defendants pleaded guilty. Small percentages of both were found guilty after a bench or jury trial. About 3 in 10 of both were acquitted or were dismissed. The apparently larger share of women than men charged with a violent felony and gaining an acquittal or dismissal merits further study Adjudication outcomes Percent of defendants for felony defendants Female Male Total, all felonies 100% 100% Pleaded guilty 66 66 Found guilty 2 5 Dismissed/acquitted 31 30 Violent felonies 100% 100% Pleaded guilty 45 55 Found guilty 3 7 Dismissed/acquitted 52 38 Property felonies 100% 100% Pleaded guilty 73 67 Found guilty 2 4 Dismissed/acquitted 25 28 Drug felonies 100% 100% Pleaded guilty 70 70 Found guilty 2 4 Dismissed/acquitted 28 26 Female corrections populations In 1998 there were an estimated 951,900 women under the care, custody, or control of adult criminal justice authorities. This translates into a rate of about 1 out of every 109 adult women in the United States -- nearly 1% of adult women -- having some kind of correctional status on any given day. About 85% of the female corrections population were being supervised in the community, and 15% were confined in prisons and jails. ------------------------------------------------------------------ Table 14 1 woman in _____ adult women in the United States had this correctional status: Any correction Probation Jail Prison Parole status 1985 227 267 4,762 4,167 4,762 1990 161 202 2,632 2,326 2,273 1995 124 159 1,961 1,587 1,493 1996 120 157 1,852 1,471 1,316 1997 115 151 1,754 1,408 1,333 1998 109 144 1,628 1,230 1,262 ------------------------------------------------------------------ Women offenders account for about 16% of the total corrections population in 1998 (5,890,300). Women represent about 21% of those on probation, 11% of those in local jails, just under 6% of those in prisons, and 12% of those on parole. Population growth has occurred in each component of corrections. The number of women per capita involved in corrections overall has grown 48% since 1990, compared to a 27% increase in the number of men per capita. Between 1990 and 1998 the per capita number of women under probation supervision climbed 40%; the jail rate grew 60%; the imprisonment rate increased 88%; and the per capita number of offenders under parole supervision was up 80%. Offense composition among women with a corrections status varies with the type of status. Violence and drug trafficking, for example, account for 17% of women on probation, 24% of those sentenced to local jails, 46% of those incarcerated in State prisons, and 65% of those confined in Federal prisons. By contrast, DWI offenses account for 18% of women on probation, 7% of those sentenced to local jails, and 2% of those held in State prisons. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Table 15 Offenses of women on probation or in jail or prison Most Percent of women offenders serious offense* Probation Local jail State prison Federal prisons Violent offenses 9% 12% 28% 7% Homicide 1 1 11 1 Property offenses 44% 34% 27% 12% Larceny 11 15 9 1 Fraud 26 12 10 10 Drug offenses 19% 30% 0 1 Public-order offenses 27% 24% 11% 8% Driving while intoxicated 18 7 2 0 Number of women offenders 721,400 27,900 75,200 9,200 *Based on the offenders' most serious offense. Overall offense categories are shown with selected detail categories containing larger percentages of women offenders. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Most violent female offenders are not confined: there are nearly 65,000 women convicted of violence under supervision by probation authorities compared to about 3,300 convicted violent offenders in local jails, 21,000 in State prisons, and fewer than 1,000 in Federal prison. Similarly, among convicted female drug traffickers, an estimated 58,000 are on probation, 5,300 are held in local jails, 13,500 in State prisons, and about 5,300 in Federal prison. Figure 9 Percent of female State prison inmates 1979 1986 1991 1997 Violent 47.9% 40.7% 32.2% 28.2% Property 36.1 41.2 28.7 26.6 Drug 12.3 12.0 32.8 34.4 Public-order 2.8 5.1 5.7 10.5 The offense composition among women in State prison has been changing. The proportion who had been convicted of violent and property crimes has been decreasing while the proportion of drug and public-order offenders has been growing. Characteristics of women serving a sentence Race and Hispanic origin While nearly two-thirds of women under probation supervision are white, nearly two-thirds of those confined in local jails and State and Federal prisons are minority -- black, Hispanic and other races. Hispanics account for about 1 in 7 women in State prisons but nearly 1 in 3 female prisoners in Federal custody. Age Women in prison, both State and Federal, are older than their counterparts in local jails or under probation supervision. While about 1 in 5 women on probation or in local jails are under age 25, 1 in 8 State prisoners and 1 in 11 Federal prisoners are of this age. Nearly a quarter of Federal prison inmates are at least 45 years old. Marital status Adult women under correctional care, custody, or control are substantially more likely than the equivalent general population to have never been married. Nearly half of women in both State prisons and local jails have never been married. Education The majority of women involved with the justice system are at least high school graduates. An estimated 60% of those on probation, 55% of those in local jails, 56% of those in State prisons, and 73% of those in Federal prison have completed high school, and 30% - 40% of high school graduates have attended some college or more. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Table 16 Characteristics of adult women on probation, in jail, and in prison Characteristics Local State Federal of women Probation jails prisons prisons Race/Hispanic origin White 62 % 36 % 33 % 29 % Black 27 44 48 35 Hispanic 10 15 15 32 Other 1 5 4 4 Age 24 or younger 20 % 21 % 12 % 9 % 25-34 39 46 43 35 35-44 30 27 34 32 45-54 10 5 9 18 55 or older 1 1 2 6 Median age 32 years 31 years 33 years 36 years Marital status Married 26 % 15 % 17 % 29 % Widowed 2 4 6 6 Separated 10 13 10 21 Divorced 20 20 20 10 Never married 42 48 47 34 Education 8th grade or less 5 % 12 % 7 % 8 % Some high school 35 33 37 19 High school graduate/GED 39 39 39 44 Some college or more 21 16 17 29 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Inmates' children Approximately 7 in 10 women under correctional sanction have minor children -- children under the age of 18. An estimated 72% of women on probation, 70% of women held in local jails, 65% of women in State prisons, and 59% of women in Federal prisons have young children. ---------------------------------------------------------------- Table 17 Children of women under correctional supervision, 1998 Estimated number Women Women offenders Minor offenders with minor children children Total 869,600 615500 1,300,800 Probation 721,400 516,200 1,067,200 Jail 63,800 44,700 105,300 State prisons 75,200 49,200 117,100 Federal prisons 9,200 5,400 11,200 Note: Only children under age 18 are counted. ------------------------------------------------------------------ Women under correctional care, custody, or supervision with minor children reported an average of 2.11 children of this age. Those on probation reported the fewest, 2.07 young children per woman with children while those in State prison reported an average of 2.38 children under age 18. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Table 18 In 1997 an estimated 2.8% of all children under age 18 have at least one parent in a local jail or a State or Federal prison. About 1 in 40 children have an incarcerated father, and 1 in 359 children have an incarcerated mother. Children with an incarcerated parent Total Mothers Fathers Estimated number of children under age 18 Jails 620,539 84,240 536,299 State prisons 1,199,277 102,448 1,096,829 Federal prisons 121,980 7,816 114,164 Total 1,941,796 194,504 1,747,292 Percent of all children under age 18 Jails 0.89% 0.12% 0.77% State prisons 1.72 0.15 1.57 Federal prisons 0.17 0.01 0.16 Total 2.78 0.28% 2.50 Note: In 1997 69,898,000 children under age 18 were in the resident population. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- These estimates translate into more than 1.3 million minor children who are the offspring of women under correctional sanction; more than a quarter million of these children have mothers who are serving time in prison or jail. About two-thirds of women in State prisons and half of women in Federal prisons who had young children had lived with those children prior to entering prison. Male inmates in State prisons are estimated to have been fathers to about 1.1 million children under age 18, about 11 times the number of minor children attributable to female inmates. About 64% of women inmates with minor children had lived with those children prior to admission to prison; among men, 44% had resided with their minor children before imprisonment. Males in Federal prisons had nearly 15 times as many minor children in total as female Federal inmates; 8 in 10 of these men and just under 6 in 10 women resided with the children prior to entering prison. Economic circumstances Female prisoners generally had more difficult economic circumstances than male inmates prior to entering prison. About 4 in 10 women in State prison reported that they had been employed full-time prior to their arrest. By contrast, nearly 6 in 10 male inmates had been working full-time prior to arrest. About 37% of women and 28% of men had incomes of less than $600 per month prior to arrest. While just under 8% of male inmates had been receiving welfare assistance prior to arrest, nearly 30% of female inmates reported receiving welfare assistance at the time just before the arrest which brought them to prison. Health issues Local State jails prisons Gynecological exam since admission? 22% 90% Pregnant when admitted? 6% 5% Prenatal care since admission? 3% 4% Receiving medication for emotional disorder? 17% 23% In 1997 an estimated 2,200 women serving time in State prisons were HIV-positive, about 3.5% of the female inmate population. An estimated 20,200 male inmates, about 2.2% of the male population, was HIV-positive. The percentage of the female inmate population that was HIV-positive peaked in 1993 at 4.2%. --------------------------------------------------------- Table 20 Forty-four percent of women under correctional authority reported that they were physically or sexually assaulted at some time during their lives. Sixty-nine percent of women reporting an assault said that it had occurred before age 18. History of physical or sexual abuse Women Probation Local jails State prisons Ever physically or sexually abused 41% 48% 57% Before age 18 16 21 12 After age 18 13 11 20 Both periods 13 16 25 Ever abused Physically 15% 10% 18% Sexually 7 10 11 Both 18 27 28 --------------------------------------------------------- Alcohol and drug use About half of women offenders confined in State prisons had been using alcohol, drugs, or both at the time of the offense for which they had been incarcerated. Among these women offenders, drug use at the time of the offense was reported more often than alcohol use, a different pattern from that found among male offenders in State prisons. On every measure of drug use (ever used, using regularly, using in month before the offense, and using at time of offense), women offenders in State prisons reported higher usage-- 40% of women inmates compared to 32% of male inmates had been under the influence of drugs when the crime occurred. By contrast, every measure of alcohol use was higher for male inmates than for female inmates. An estimated 25% of women on probation, 29% of women in local jails, 29% of women in State prisons, and 15% of women in Federal prisons had been consuming alcohol at the time of the offense. ------------------------------------------------------------------- Table 21 Alcohol and drug use by female inmates Percent of female State prison inmates using at the time of the offense - Both alcohol Total None and drugs Alcohol Drugs All 100% 48% 16% 13% 24% Violent 100 51 17 20 11 Property 100 53 15 7 25 Drug 100 43 18 7 32 Public-order 100 41 10 24 25 -------------------------------------------------------------------- Just over half of women confined in State prisons reported drinking alcohol in the year before the current offense compared to two-thirds of male offenders in State prisons. Daily drinkers accounted for about 25% of female inmates and 29% of male inmates. At the time of the offense, 29% of women offenders and 38% of male inmates had been under the influence of alcohol. About 6 in 10 women in State prison described themselves as using drugs in the month before the offense, 5 in 10 described themselves as a daily user of drugs, and 4 in 10 were under the influence of drugs at the time of the offense. Nearly 1 in 3 women serving time in State prisons said they had committed the offense which brought them to prison in order to obtain money to support their need for drugs. Substance abusing women inmates were more likely than drug/alcohol-involved male inmates to report having received treatment. Nearly 56% of women substance abusers in State prisons compared to 41% of males had ever been in substance abuse treatment; 20% of women and 14% of men had received such treatment since prison admission. Nearly a third of both men and women inmates with substance abuse problems indicated that they had participated in some other type of voluntary program, such as Alcoholics Anonymous or Narcotics Anonymous, since entering prison. Criminal history About 65% of women confined in State prisons had a history of prior convictions; about 77% of men serving time in State prisons had a prior conviction record. Male inmates were twice as likely as female inmates to have had a juvenile history (38% versus 19%); 7 out of 10 male inmates and 6 out of 10 female inmates had an adult history of convictions. About 1 in 6 women inmates and nearly 1 in 3 male inmates had criminal records spanning both their juvenile and adult years. --------------------------------------------- Table 22 Criminal history of prison inmates Percent of State prison inmates Criminal history Female Male Past convictions None 35% 23% Juvenile only 3 7 Adult only 46 39 Both adult and juvenile 16 31 Number of prior convictions 0 35% 23% 1 17 17 2 16 16 3-5 19 25 6-10 8 12 11 or more 5 6 Status at arrest None 47% 53% Probation 34 21 Parole 18 25 Escapee 1 1 ------------------------------------------ Male inmates had also acquired more convictions than women. While about a third of women prisoners had 3 or more prior convictions, about 43% of male inmates had records containing at least 3 prior convictions. Women in prison were substantially more likely than male inmates to have had a correctional status at the time of the offense which brought them to prison. About 1 in 3 women inmates had been on probation when their offense occurred compared to 1 in 5 male inmates. About 40% of female first-timers and 65% of male first-timers serving a prison sentence had been convicted of a violent offense. This translates into about 20% of all women inmates and 8% of all male inmates incarcerated in State prisons nationwide as offenders serving their first sentence after conviction for a nonviolent crime. State and Federal prisoners At the end of 1998, 84,427 women were under the jurisdiction of State and Federal correctional authorities. Of these, 75,241 were held by the States and 9,186 were held by the Federal Bureau of Prisons. Between 1990 and 1998 the number of women confined in prisons grew by an annual average of 8.5%; over the same years, prison populations nationwide increased an average 6.7% annually. In 1990 State and Federal prisons housed 44,065 female prisoners, just over half the number held in 1998. ------------------------------------------------ Table 23 Female prison populations, 1998 Number of female inmates Per 100,000 Yearend women Jurisdictions 1998 residents Total, all jurisdictions 84,427 57 States, total 75,241 51 Federal 9,186 5 States with at least 1,000 women prisoners Alabama 1,525 64 Arizona 1,780 66 California 11,694 67 Colorado 1,070 53 Connecticut 1,357 43 Florida 3,526 45 Georgia 2,474 61 Illinois 2,646 43 Indiana 1,198 39 Kentucky 1,046 51 Louisiana 2,126 94 Maryland 1,140 39 Michigan 2,052 41 Mississippi 1,213 77 Missouri 1,880 67 New Jersey 1,653 39 New York 3,631 38 North Carolina 1,932 35 Ohio 2,912 50 Oklahoma 2,091 122 Pennsylvania 1,517 24 South Carolina 1,412 63 Texas 10,343 102 Virginia 1,806 47 Washington 1,018 35 Wisconsin 1,169 42 ------------------------------------------------ Among State prisoners in 1998, 44% (33,345) were held by States in the South. The incarceration rate in the South was the highest of any region-- 65 female prisoners per 100,000 residents. The West accounted for 25% (18,845) of the total State prison population and had a per capita rate of imprisonment of 58 per 100,000. Midwestern States, with about 18% of female State prisoners (13,684), had a rate of 42 prisoners per 100,000 residents. The Northeast accounted for 12% of women held by States (9,367) and had an incarceration rate of 31. In 1998 the highest per capita rate of confinement among the States was in Oklahoma (122), and the lowest was in Maine and Vermont (9 in each). The District of Columbia had a rate equal to 173 per 100,000 female residents. Trends in the number of sentenced female prisoners per 100,000 female residents, by race: Year All women White Black 1990 31 19 117 1991 33 19 129 1992 35 20 136 1993 40 23 155 1994 45 26 169 1995 47 27 176 1996 51 30 185 1997 53 32 192 1998 57 34* 212* *Based on projected estimate. Sentences to prison Prison admissions In 1996 women accounted for about 9% of all State prison admissions, 10% of those admitted from courts, and 8% of revoked violator admissions. For all types of offenses except property offenses, the sentences received by women were shorter than those received by men; the average sentences for property offenses were the same. Short sentences on average may reflect overall differences in criminal background, particularly the prevalence of violence in the backgrounds of males sentenced to prison. ---------------------------------------------------------- Table 25 New court commitments to State prison in 1996 Women Men Percent of Median Percent of Median admissions sentence admissions sentence Total 100% 36 mo 100% 48 mo Violent 17 60 31 72 Property 36 36 28 36 Drugs 39 36 29 42 All other 8 24 12 36 ---------------------------------------------------------- Women accounted for more than 10% of those admitted to State prisons for negligent manslaughter (13% were women), larceny (18%), arson (12%), fraud (31%), drug possession (14%), and drug trafficking (11%). Women accounted for about 1% of those admitted for rape and sexual assault. About 26% of women admitted to prison following a court sentence had been convicted of larceny or fraud (including forgery and embezzlement) --offenses accounting for about 10% of male admissions. Prison releases Women accounted for just over 9% of those discharged from State prisons in 1996. Among those released, the median time served for murder was 80 months for men and 60 months for women. --------------------------------------------------------------- Table 26 First releases from State prison in 1996 Women Men Percent of Median time Percent of Median time releases served releases served Total 100% 12 mo 100% 16 mo Violent 14 20 26 28 Property 38 11 31 15 Drugs 41 12 32 14 All other 8 10 11 12 --------------------------------------------------------------- As found for sentencing, the median length of stay for women was less than that for men for every type of offense. This may be a reflection of the more extensive criminal histories of men and the higher prevalence of convictions for violence in their backgrounds. Death sentences At the end of 1997, 44 inmates, or 1.3% of the death row population, were women. During the year, two women were sentenced to death and five had their death sentences removed. States holding women under sentence of death were C Table 27 Alabama - 3 Missouri - 1 Arizona - 1 Nevada - 1 California - 8 New Jersey - 1 Florida - 6 North Carolina - 3 Idaho - 1 Oklahoma - 3 Illinois - 2 Pennsylvania - 4 Mississippi - 1 Tennessee - 2 Texas - 7 Of the 44 women under sentence of death, 30 were white and 14 were black. One white inmate and one black inmate were Hispanic. For women under sentence of death, an average of 78 months had elapsed since sentencing, about 8 months less than for males. Figure 10 Women under sentence of death White Black Total 1971 3 0 3 4 0 4 1 1 2 0 1 2 1975 4 3 8 4 1 5 4 2 6 5 0 5 6 2 8 1980 7 2 9 8 3 11 11 3 14 9 4 13 12 5 18 1985 12 6 19 12 7 20 16 7 23 16 9 25 20 11 31 1990 23 12 35 24 12 36 24 13 37 26 12 38 28 15 43 1995 31 15 46 32 15 47 1997 30 14 44 Between January 1, 1977, and December 31, 1997, a total of 432 persons were executed including 1 white, non-Hispanic female in North Carolina in 1984. During 1998, 2 women were executed (1 each in Texas and Florida). Recidivism In 1996, women accounted for about 11% of successful discharges from parole and 8% of unsuccessful parole terminations. Overall, about 45% of women for whom parole supervision was ended in 1996 were returned to prison or had absconded. Women successfully discharged from parole supervision had spent an average of 15 months in prison on their sentence and 20 months under supervision in the community. Unsuccessful female parole discharges had spent an average of 17 months in prison and 18 months under community supervision prior to termination. A 3-year followup of a sample representing 109,000 persons (6,400 females among them) discharged from prisons in 11 States in 1983 found that 52% of women were rearrested. An estimated 39% of women discharged from prisons were reconvicted within 3 years and 33% were returned to prison. Prior arrest history was an important predictor of post-prison recidivism: among women with only the one arrest for which they had been imprisoned, 21% were rearrested within 3 years. Among women with 2-3 prior arrests, 33% were rearrested; those with 4-6 prior arrests had a 47% rearrest rate; among those with 7-10 priors, 69% were rearrested; and, nearly 8 out of 10 women with 11 or more priors were rearrested. ------------------------------------------------------------- The prevalence of imprisonment among women The most recent BJS estimate of the lifetime chance of being sent to Federal or State prison at least once indicates that overall about 11 women out of 1,000 will be incarcerated at some time in their lives. The estimates further show that about 5 out of 1,000 white women, 36 out of 1,000 black women, and 15 out of 1,000 Hispanic women will be subjected to imprisonment during their lifetime. For males, BJS estimates indicate that about 90 out of 1,000 males will be incarcerated during their lives; 44 white males, 285 black males, and 160 Hispanic males for every 1,000 in the general population will serve time in a Federal or State prison. By 1,000 women age -- White Black Hispanic 20 -- 3 1 25 2 11 4 30 3 20 7 35 4 27 9 40 4 31 12 45 5 33 13 50 5 34 14 55 5 35 15 65 5 36 15 Lifetime 5 36 15 ------------------------------------------------------------- Basic sources for statistics describing women offenders The information in this report was derived from the following data sources. Detailed descriptions of the methodology can be found in recent publications and can be obtained by requesting them from the BJS Clearinghouse, Box 179, Annapolis Junction, MD 20701-0179, or by calling 1-800-732-3277. Most reports are also available at the BJS World Wide Web site ¾ http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/ National Crime Victimization Survey The National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) is one of two statistical series maintained by the Department of Justice to learn about the extent to which crime is occurring. The NCVS, which gathers data on criminal victimization from a national sample of household respondents, provides annual estimates of crimes experienced by the public without regard to whether a law enforcement agency was called about the crime. Initiated in 1972, the NCVS was designed to complement what is known about crimes reported to local law enforcement agencies under the FBI's annual compilation known as the Uniform Crime Reports (UCR). The NCVS gathers information about crime and its consequences from a nationally representative sample of U.S. residents age 12 or older about any crimes they may have experienced. For personal contact crimes the survey asks about the perpetrator, including gender. One of the important contributions of the NCVS is that it permits multiple years of responses to the same questions to be analyzed, facilitating research on small subgroups of the population. For this study 5 years of NCVS data (1993-97) were combined, resulting in more than 1 million interviews, just over 40,000 of which were conducted among persons experiencing violent victimizations. Criminal Victimization 1998: Changes 1997-98 with Trends 1993-98, BJS, July 1999, NCJ 176353. Uniform Crime Reporting program The UCR program of the FBI provides another opportunity to examine the issue of crime and violence committed by women offenders through the incident-based Supplementary Homicide Report program and the summary compilation of national arrest data. The summary-based arrest component of the UCR provides data by gender of arrestees for both Part I crimes and the less serious Part II crimes. In 1997, data by gender and offense were available for about 2 out of 3 arrests nationwide (about 10.5 million of the estimated 15.3 million arrests that year). Females are estimated to account for about 16% of those arrested for Part I violent crimes. The 1997 UCR does indicate reduced reporting of arrests by gender (table 42) and that a number of jurisdictions (Kentucky, Illinois, Montana, District of Columbia, Florida, and New Hampshire) supplied either limited or no arrest data. Some of these incomplete or missing States, notably Illinois and Florida, may affect the national estimates for females. FBI, Crime in the United States, selected years. Supplementary Homicide Reports FBI's Supplementary Homicide Reports (SHR) is a part of the UCR program. Supplemental data about homicide incidents are submitted monthly with detail on location, victim, and offender characteristics. These reports include information on the month and year of an offense, on the reporting agency and its residential population, on the age, race, and sex of victims and offenders, and on the victim/offender relationship, weapon use, and circumstance of the crime. For the years 1976-97, contributing agencies provided supplemental data for 425,012 of the estimated 464,590 murders. Supplemental data were also reported for 469,220 of the estimated 513,051 offenders. FBI, National Archive of Criminal Justice Data, accessible through ¾ http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/NACJD/home.html search for data (DA): 6754 State Court Processing Statistics State Court Processing Statistics (SCPS) (formerly, through 1994, National Pretrial Reporting Program (NPRP)) provides data on the criminal justice processing of persons charged with felonies in 40 jurisdictions representative of the 75 largest counties, which account for about half the serious crime nationwide. The program prospectively tracks felony defendants from charging by the prosecutor until disposition of their cases or for a maximum of 12 months. Data are obtained on demographic characteristics, arrest offense, criminal justice status at time of arrest, prior arrests and convictions, bail and pretrial release, court appearance record, rearrests while on pretrial release, type and outcome of adjudication, and type and length of sentence. This biennial data collection originated in 1988. Felony Defendants in Large Urban Counties, 1996, BJS, October 1999, NCJ 176981. National Judicial Reporting Program The National Judicial Reporting Program (NJRP) is a sample survey of court records on convicted felons. Using a nationally representative sample of counties, NJRP compiles individual-level data on felons convicted in State courts. Data elements include conviction offense, sentence received, case-processing, methods of conviction, and a variety of other defendant characteristics. The NJRP first reported felony sentencing data for 1986 and has provided national estimates at 2-year intervals. Felony Sentences in State Courts, 1996, BJS, May 1999, NCJ 173939. National Prisoner Statistics The National Prisoner Statistics (NPS) data series produces annual and semi-annual national and State-level data on the numbers of prisoners in State and Federal prison facilities (NPS-1). Since 1926 the Federal government has published data annually on the prisoner count in each State, the District of Columbia, and the Federal prison system. Prisoners in 1998, BJS, August 1999, NCJ 175687. A second data collection in the NPS series yields annual national and State-level data on persons sentenced to death and those executed (NPS-8). Data collected include offender demographic characteristics, prior criminal histories, and criminal justice system status at the time of the capital offense, and time spent on death row. Data are available on executions since 1930 and sentencing since 1973. Capital Punishment 1997, BJS, December 1998, NCJ 172881. National Corrections Reporting Program The National Corrections Reporting Program (NCRP) has collected data annually since 1983 on prison admissions and releases and on parole entries and discharges in participating jurisdictions. Demographic information, conviction offenses, sentence length, minimum time to be served, credited jail time, type of admission, type of release, and time served are collected from individual prisoner records. BJS spreadsheets for selected years accessible through ¾ Http://ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/dtdata.htm#time Surveys of probationers and jail and prison inmates BJS also conducts national surveys of persons under probation supervision and those confined in local jails and State and Federal prisons. These nationally representative surveys are the principal source of information on those serving time following a conviction: their backgrounds, their prior criminal histories, and the circumstances surrounding the offense for which they had been incarcerated. Both jail and prison surveys obtain from violent offenders details about the offender's relationship to the victim. Substance Abuse and Treatment of Adults on Probation, 1995, BJS, March 1998, NCJ 166611. Profile of Jail Inmates, 1996, BJS, April 1998, NCJ 164629. Substance Abuse and Treatment of State and Federal Prisoners, 1997, BJS, January 1999, NCJ 172871. Lifetime Likelihood of Going to State or Federal Prison This BJS Special Report estimates lifetime chances of going to State or Federal prison using standard demographic lifetable techniques and assuming that recent incarceration rates remain unchanged. It describes characteristics of persons admitted to prison for the first time, compares lifetime and 1-day prevalence rates, and considers changes in admission rates since 1991. March 1997, NCJ 160092. 12/2/99 th Revised 10/3/00, th