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Criminology and Criminal Justice
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Criminology and Criminal Justice

A special issue of Laws (ISSN 2075-471X). This special issue belongs to the section "Criminal Justice Issues".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (28 February 2021) | Viewed by 52471

Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Samantha Jeffries

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Criminology and Criminal Justice, Griffith University, Brisbane 4122, Australia
Interests: gender studies; sociology; prisons; courts; domestic violence; qualitative analysis; social exclusion; feminist theory; ethnography; multiculturalism; ethnicity; indigeneity; narrative analysis

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Gender is one of the most powerful predictors of offending, criminalisation and victimisation. In addition, gender impacts experiences of criminal justice.  Men are more likely than women to commit crime, particularly serious violence, are more likely to be the victims of violence (at the hands of other men) and, remain grossly over-represented in criminal justice systems throughout the world. However, the number of women subject to criminalisation, particularly imprisonment, has increased significantly over the last few decades and violence by men against women (e.g. domestic and sexual violence) is a globally pervasive problem.  Despite this, the discipline of criminology has predominately been concerned with explaining the criminalisation of men. This shifted slightly in the 1970’s with the development of feminist criminology and by the 1980’s the gendered nature of male offending also started to be explored.  More recently, intersections with other social statuses (e.g. race/ethnicity/Indigeneity, age, class/caste) have been increasingly examined. However, criminological scholarship continues to be relatively silent when it comes to the offending, criminalisation and criminal justice experiences of those who fall outside the normative gender binary and scholarship outside of western societal contexts is still in its infancy.

This Special Issue intends to progress contemporary dialogues on gender, crime, criminalisation, victimisation, criminal justice and law. We welcome contributions that expand understandings of gender in these areas including research, theoretical, policy and practice-based articles. More specifically contributions in the following areas are sought:

  1. The gendered nature of offending and criminalisation
  2. The gendered nature of victimisation
  3. Gendered experiences of criminal justice
  4. Gendered perspectives in criminal law, criminal justice policy and practice
  5. Intersections between gender and other social statuses in experiences of offending, criminalisation, victimisation and criminal justice.

Prof. Samantha Jeffries
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Laws is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • gender
  • crime
  • criminalisation
  • victimisation
  • criminal law
  • criminal justice
  • intersectionality
  • LGBTIQ

Published Papers (7 papers)

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13 pages, 252 KiB  
Article
Sexual Violence against Women, the Laws, the Punishment, and Negotiating the Duplicity
by Suvarna Cherukuri
Laws 2021, 10(2), 27; https://doi.org/10.3390/laws10020027 - 13 Apr 2021
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 6365
Abstract
On 16 December 2012, India erupted in national outrage against the rape of a 23-year-old female student in New Delhi, christened “Nirbhaya” (fearless). In the aftermath, there was a convergence of multiple discourses that framed post-independent India’s feminist consciousness. In 2020, four men [...] Read more.
On 16 December 2012, India erupted in national outrage against the rape of a 23-year-old female student in New Delhi, christened “Nirbhaya” (fearless). In the aftermath, there was a convergence of multiple discourses that framed post-independent India’s feminist consciousness. In 2020, four men convicted of Nirbhaya’s rape and murder were executed. An eight-year old girl in Kashmir was brutally raped and murdered in January 2018. The trial court sentenced the main accused to life in prison. In December 2019, four men held in yet another horrific rape and death of a 27-year veterinarian in Hyderabad were killed by the police in what has been called an extrajudicial killing. More recently, in 2020, a 19-year old was raped and killed in rural Uttar Pradesh. The victims came from different social locations, castes, tribes, and religious communities. This paper presents a feminist critique of the legal discourse on rape and the death penalty. It looks at an ironical cooptation of the critique of sexual violence by a patriarchal discourse on social injury and collective conscience. The paper examines how fleeting rage against the culprits and the call for death penalty immunizes larger misogynist cultural assumptions. This myopic rage is oblivious to sexual violence in women’s daily lives. Finally, the paper looks at why legal reforms triggered by brutal acts of sexual violence, receiving widespread media attention, fail to achieve systemic societal changes. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Criminology and Criminal Justice)
26 pages, 346 KiB  
Article
Rethinking the Relationship between Women, Crime and Economic Factors: The Case-Study of Women Sentenced to Death for Drug Trafficking in Malaysia
by Lucy Harry
Laws 2021, 10(1), 9; https://doi.org/10.3390/laws10010009 - 31 Jan 2021
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 9741
Abstract
This paper draws upon my doctoral research into the experiences of women who have been sentenced to death for drug trafficking in Malaysia. I utilise this case-study as a lens through which to examine the relationship between women, crime and economic factors. From [...] Read more.
This paper draws upon my doctoral research into the experiences of women who have been sentenced to death for drug trafficking in Malaysia. I utilise this case-study as a lens through which to examine the relationship between women, crime and economic factors. From my data derived from 47 ‘elite’ interviews, as well as legal and media database searches (resulting in information on 146 cases), I argue that current feminist criminological theorising should be updated to incorporate the relationship between women’s crime and precarious work. As I show, precarity is gendered and disproportionately affects women from the global south. Overall, I find that many of the women who have been sentenced to death in Malaysia were engaged in precarious work and drug trafficking was a way to make ‘quick money’ to address economic insecurity. Clearly, capital punishment is incommensurate with the crime. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Criminology and Criminal Justice)
16 pages, 256 KiB  
Article
Gender Bias in Indonesian Courts: Is Perma No. 3 of 2017 the Solution for Gender-Based Violence Cases?
by Rika Saraswati
Laws 2021, 10(1), 2; https://doi.org/10.3390/laws10010002 - 29 Dec 2020
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 4513
Abstract
To support women who are dealing with the legal system, especially women victims of gender-based violence, the Indonesian government issued Supreme Court Regulation (Perma) No. 3 of 2017 on Guidelines for Judging Cases of Women in Conflict with the Law. This regulation deals [...] Read more.
To support women who are dealing with the legal system, especially women victims of gender-based violence, the Indonesian government issued Supreme Court Regulation (Perma) No. 3 of 2017 on Guidelines for Judging Cases of Women in Conflict with the Law. This regulation deals with women as victims, defendants and witnesses, and is used for civil and criminal cases. The Perma appears to attempt to counterbalance existing discriminatory practices in the courts and their processes. This article discusses the effectiveness of the “special treatment” in Supreme Court Regulation (Perma) No. 3 of 2017 on Guidelines for Judging Cases of Women in Conflict with the Law. This Perma seems to provide hope for producing progressive court decisions by contributing to the elimination of discrimination against women in the court process. However, this expectation certainly needs to be reviewed, given that, in their entirety, any such proceedings involve not only judges but also other law enforcement officials, namely the prosecutors. Furthermore, the presence of this Perma is considered by some Indonesian feminists to contradict the Judicial Code of Ethics and Guidelines for Judicial Behaviour (“the Code”). The Code requires judges to be neutral in judging but this Perma demands the opposite. This study is a qualitative study, and the data is obtained through a literature study of research conducted on court decisions and gender-based violence cases involving Indonesian women. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Criminology and Criminal Justice)
38 pages, 1084 KiB  
Article
Expectations and Experiences of Women Imprisoned for Drug Offending and Returning to Communities in Thailand: Understanding Women’s Pathways Into, Through, and Post-Imprisonment
by Samantha Jeffries, Chontit Chuenurah and Tristan Russell
Laws 2020, 9(2), 15; https://doi.org/10.3390/laws9020015 - 22 Jun 2020
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 6678
Abstract
Thailand places a high priority on the gender-specific contexts out of which offending arises and the differential needs of women in the criminal justice system. Despite this, Thailand has the highest female incarceration rate in South East Asia and there has been substantial [...] Read more.
Thailand places a high priority on the gender-specific contexts out of which offending arises and the differential needs of women in the criminal justice system. Despite this, Thailand has the highest female incarceration rate in South East Asia and there has been substantial growth since the 1990s. This increase has been driven by punitive changes in drug law, criminal justice policy/practice which have disproportionately impacted women. As female representation in Thailand’s prisons grows, so does the number of women who return to communities. Thus, one of the challenges facing Thai society is the efficacious re-integration of growing numbers of formally incarcerated women. However, what is known about re-entry comes almost exclusively from studies of prisoners (usually men) returning home in western societies. Re-integration does not occur in a vacuum. Supporting women post-release necessitates knowledge of their pathways to, experiences of, and journeys out of prison. Utilising in-depth interviews with (n = 80) imprisoned/formally incarcerated women and focus groups with (n = 16) correctional staff, this paper reports findings from the first comprehensive study of women’s re-integration expectations and experiences in Thailand. Findings showed that women had multifaceted and intersectional needs which directed their pathways into, during, and out of prison. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Criminology and Criminal Justice)
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26 pages, 355 KiB  
Article
Adult Restorative Justice and Gendered Violence: Practitioner and Service Provider Viewpoints from Queensland, Australia
by Samantha Jeffries, William R. Wood and Tristan Russell
Laws 2021, 10(1), 13; https://doi.org/10.3390/laws10010013 - 17 Feb 2021
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 6462
Abstract
This paper presents findings from a study exploring the experiences and viewpoints of conventional criminal justice actors, social and legal service providers, and restorative justice (RJ) conference facilitators/convenors regarding the use of adult RJ conferencing in cases of intimate partner, domestic, family (IPDFV) [...] Read more.
This paper presents findings from a study exploring the experiences and viewpoints of conventional criminal justice actors, social and legal service providers, and restorative justice (RJ) conference facilitators/convenors regarding the use of adult RJ conferencing in cases of intimate partner, domestic, family (IPDFV) and sexual violence (SV). Results indicated strong views about what IPDFV/SV victims needed from a system of justice, perceived failings of conventional justice systems in this regard, and the potential of RJ to deliver more efficacious justice. Nevertheless, using RJ in these cases posed concerns and challenges. Research participants identified steps that could be taken to overcome these issues through an RJ best practice framework underpinned by a victim-centred approach committed to victim empowerment, safety, healing, and practitioner training. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Criminology and Criminal Justice)
19 pages, 434 KiB  
Article
“We’re Not Being Treated Like Mothers”: Listening to the Stories of First Nations Mothers in Prison
by Thalia Anthony, Gemma Sentance and Larissa Behrendt
Laws 2021, 10(3), 74; https://doi.org/10.3390/laws10030074 - 13 Sep 2021
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 6862
Abstract
This article is based on research with over 160 First Nations women in prisons in New South Wales, Australia. The research identified the lived experience of prison sentences for First Nations women in prison. Our research methodology was guided by an Aboriginal women’s [...] Read more.
This article is based on research with over 160 First Nations women in prisons in New South Wales, Australia. The research identified the lived experience of prison sentences for First Nations women in prison. Our research methodology was guided by an Aboriginal women’s advisory body called sista2sista. It was based on the principles of Dadirri in which we listened to the stories of First Nations women in prison on their terms. Consequently, many stories we heard were not about the criminal sentencing process itself, but about the impacts of imprisonment on their capacity to be caregivers in the community, including as mothers, grandmothers, aunts, sisters, teachers and role models. The findings from this research are dual. First, the importance of listening to and empowering First Nations women in prison in policy making that concerns First Nations women. Second, the need to decarcerate First Nations mothers and listen and respond to their needs, expectations, priorities and aspirations, to ensure they are supported in fulfilling their role and responsibility to care, nurture, strengthen and lead their families and communities. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Criminology and Criminal Justice)
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23 pages, 2236 KiB  
Article
Challenges of Effective Communication in the Criminal Justice Process: Findings from Interviews with Victims of Sexual Offences in Australia
by Rhiannon Davies and Lorana Bartels
Laws 2020, 9(4), 31; https://doi.org/10.3390/laws9040031 - 6 Dec 2020
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 9883
Abstract
This article focuses on gendered experiences of the criminal justice system, specifically the experiences of adult female victims of sexual offending and the communication difficulties they experience during the criminal justice process. Drawing on the findings from qualitative interviews about sentencing with six [...] Read more.
This article focuses on gendered experiences of the criminal justice system, specifically the experiences of adult female victims of sexual offending and the communication difficulties they experience during the criminal justice process. Drawing on the findings from qualitative interviews about sentencing with six victims and 15 justice professionals in Australia, we compare the lived experiences of the victims with the perceptions of the justice professionals who work with them, revealing a significant gap between the information justice professionals believe they are providing and the information victims recall receiving. We then analyse the international literature to distil effective communication strategies, with the goal of improving victims’ experiences of the criminal justice system as a whole. Specifically, we recommend verbal communication skills training for justice professionals who work with victims of crime and the development of visual flowcharts to help victims better understand the criminal justice process. We also recommend that Australian victims’ rights regimes be reformed to place the responsibility for providing information about the criminal process on the relevant justice agencies, rather than requiring the victim to seek this information, and suggest piloting automated notification systems to help agencies fulfil their obligations to provide victims with such information. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Criminology and Criminal Justice)
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