QUICK FACTS: WOMEN & CRIMINAL JUSTICE
(Source: Women’s Prison Association, 2009)
- Over 200,000 women are in prison and jail in the United States, and more than one million women are under criminal justice supervision.
- The number of women in prison has grown by over 800% in the past three decades.
- Two thirds of women in prison are there for non-violent offenses, many for drug- related crimes.
- Nearly two-thirds of women in prison are mothers.
- 2 million children have a parent in prison
- Women of color are disproportionately represented in prison.
- 60-67% of female prisoners are Black or Hispanic
- 24% of the U.S. population is Black or Hispanic
- 64% of women entering prison do not have a high school diploma
- Over 80% of incarcerated women have been victims of domestic violence or sexual assault at some point in their lives.
THE GREY AREA 