The book reflects the experiences of women in society in general and in the crime-processing system specifically, and offers precise explanations of feminist views and criminological theory. From both a political as well as a historical perspective, the book identifies the changes that have and have not happened for women; explores how gender and gender differences intertwine with race, racism and class distinctions to reflect the unique experiences among women within the criminal justice system. The book is divided into 11 chapters: (1) Emergence of Gender in Criminology; (2) Critiquing Criminological Theories; (3) The Frequency and Nature of Female Offending; (4) Processing Female Offenders; (5) Punishing and Treating Female Offenders; (6) The Image of the Female Victim; (7) Sexual Victimization; (8) Battered Women; (9) Resistance to Change; (10) On the Job; and (11) Effecting Change. Tables, references, notes, figure, indexes