TWO GENERAL HYPOTHESES WEE INVESTIGATED: 1) FEMALE CRIME HAS INCREASED SINCE THE TURN OF THE CENTURY IN AUSTRALIA, AND 2) THIS RATE OF INCREASE HAS BEEN GREATER THAN THAT FOR MEN. SEX-SPECIFIC CRIME RATES PER 100,000 POPULATION AND THE PROPORTIONS OF DIFFERENT DISPOSITIONS TO TOTAL NUMBER OF CHARGES WERE DERIVED FROM THE YEARLY OFFENSE DATA FOR ALL THE MAGISTRATES' COURTS IN SOUTH AUSTRALIA. INCLUDING BOTH ADULTS AND JUVENILES, THESE DATA WERE ORGANIZED INTO THE FOLLOWING CATEGORIES. 1) OFFENSES AGAISNT THE PERSON (INCLUDING MURDER, ATTEMPTED MURDER, MANSLAUGHTER, MANSLAUGHTER BY DRIVING, ASSAULT, AND UNNATURAL OFFENSES, EXCLUDING RAPE), AND 2) OFFENSES AGAINST PROPERTY (INCLUDING ROBBERY, BREAKING AND ENTERING, LARCENY, WILLFUL/MALICIOUS DAMAGE, FRAUD, FALSE PRETENCES, FORGERY, AND OTHER CURRENCY OFFENSES). RESULTS SHOWED THAT FEMALE CRIMINAL OFFENSES AND CONVICTION RATES ARE INCREASING AND AT A SUBSTANTIALLY GREATER RATE THAN THAT OF MEN FOR BOTH OFFENSES AGAINST PROPERTY AND AGAINST THE PERSN. HOWEVER, CAUTION MUST BE EXERCISED IN DRAWING CONCLUSIONS ABOUT THE DEGREE OF FEMALE CRIMINALITY BECAUSE THE MUCH HIGHER PERCENTAGE INCREASE IN WOMEN'S CRIMES ACTUALLY REPRESENTS A MUCH SMALLER NUMERICAL INCREASE IN CRIMES DUE TO THE SIGNIFICANTLY SMALLER DATA BASE FOR WOMEN'S OFFENSES IN BOTH CRIMES AGAINST PROPERTY AND AGAINST THE PERSON. IT IS CONCLUDED THAT STATEMENTS LINKING INCREASED FEMALE CRIMINALITY WITH INCREASED PARTICIPATION OF WOMEN IN THE WORK FORCE ARE MISLEADING AND TOTALLY UNFAIR TO WOMEN. FOOTNOTES, TABLES, AND CHARTS ARE PROVIDED. (DEG)