True Criminal Justice Reform Should Include Women, Too

Women’s History Month offers us a chance to celebrate women, perhaps educating ourselves on the struggles those before us have endured. However, there are those among us right now who deserve our attention: the more than 200,000 women who make up the nation’s prison and jail population.

Though they only make up a small percentage of the overall prison population, according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, America’s incarcerated women — and their families and communities — deserve the attention of our policymakers at the state and federal levels.

Criminal justice reform is increasingly a popular issue garnering support from elected officials both Democratic and Republican alike. Many recognize that using prison space for only the most serious and high-risk offenders, equipping individuals with skills to be productive citizens within their communities and investing in mental health and substance use treatment programs equal better public safety outcomes for all communities.

But all too often when we discuss improving the criminal justice system in America, we focus on men.

Many fail to realize that the population of incarcerated women continues to grow, even though state and federal prison admissions declined overall. Not to mention the fact that when a woman is incarcerated, it often means children and families are deeply affected. Our politicians must pay attention to this critical population as they aim to develop a fairer and more effective criminal justice system.

General Facts on Incarcerated Women

Over the last 40 years, the number of women in prison nationwide has been growing at an alarming rate. In 2015, the number of women in state prisons was nearly eight times higher than in 1980. The growth rate of women in prison is more than double that of men. Similarly, local jails are seeing an increased rate of detained women.

While some states have seen a higher rate of growth of incarcerated women than others, from 2009 to 2015 the population of women in prison either grew while the male population declined; grew at a rate that continued to outpace the growth of the male population; or declined at a rate significantly less than males. These uneven rates of growth and decline is noteworthy because many states enacted reform efforts during this time. Though by and large, these efforts resulted in an overall reduction in the prison population and lower rates of recidivism, those reductions largely only occurred among men.

Perhaps that is because the path to incarceration is different for many women. Compared with men, women are more likely to experience sexual abuse or other forms of victimization. Women are also more likely to suffer from substance use disorder, mental health challenges or co-occurring disorders. According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, an estimated 24 percent of women (compared with 14 percent of men) in jails have a serious mental illness such as bipolar disorder or schizophrenia.

Women also have a different experience once they’re in the criminal justice system. They are less likely to be incarcerated for violent crimes and more likely to be incarcerated for drug and property crimes. Of women in local jails, roughly 60 percent are awaiting trial, often because they are unable to afford bail. Perhaps most notably, convicted women generally serve sentences for misdemeanor convictions.

The Impact on Families and Communities

As previously mentioned, the effects of incarcerating a woman often extend to their families and communities.

Take, for example, the growing number of children with mothers in prison. Between 1991 and 2010, the number of children with a mother in prison more than doubled. More than 60 percent of women in state prisons have a child under the age of 18. And women are more likely than men to be primary — or sole — caregivers.

Research shows that when children lose their primary caregiver to incarceration, they experience financial hardship, trauma, relationship disruption and home instability. Therefore, our policies must work to maintain and strengthen positive familial connections and improve positive outcomes for families.

Rethinking Responses and Strategies

Though it remains unclear why the number of incarcerated women continues to grow,

it may be partly attributed to sentencing responses for drug and property offenses, probation and parole policies and the lack of gender-responsive practices.

Criminal justice policies and practices were designed and focused on assessing, supervising and addressing the needs of men and boys. By incorporating gender-responsive strategies, we can begin to more effectively address the rising rate of incarcerated women. Those strategies are trauma-informed, culturally competent and holistic, and they are notably guided by women-centered research. Gender responsiveness accounts for the different characteristics and life experiences of women and men, and responds to women’s needs, strengths and challenges. Gender-responsive strategies include planning for gender-appropriate and effective services; improving the management of medical, mental health and substance use care for women; and identifying existing and needed community-based supports.

States hold more prisoners than the federal government, so governors have a large stake in improving our criminal justice system. Some governors have already made strides in helping the female prison population.

Speaking at a national symposium on policy solutions to address the growth of female incarceration, Gov. Mary Fallin spoke about Oklahoma’s challenges in having the highest rate of incarcerated women in the nation. The state is undergoing efforts to work across human services, mental health and correctional agencies to improve women’s outcomes.

Following a gender-responsive assessment of the women’s prison in Illinois, Gov. Bruce Rauner signed legislation creating a women’s division within the department of corrections to improve correctional policies and practices for women. The division will have operational oversight over all women’s correctional and transition centers and will develop training for correctional staff. In a state where the female prison population grew by more than 750 percent, a gender-informed practice assessment will serve as a baseline for a three-year strategic plan and reform process.

States are also seeking ways to keep incarcerated mothers connected to their children. For example, in Ohio, Washington and New York, pregnant women may be eligible to participate in the state’s prison nursery or parenting program. These programs allow women and their children to reside together for a portion of the mother’s sentence.

As our elected officials continue to focus resources and services to reform our criminal justice system, they must also ensure that these efforts attend to the needs of all persons involved in the justice system, including women.

Kalyn Hill is a policy analyst in the Homeland Security and Public Safety Division of the National Governors Association Center for Best Practices.