Indigenous Female Offenders

Abstract

Indigenous women are overrepresented in the Canadian, Australian, and New Zealand criminal justice systems, and their populations are increasing. This entry presents the available data on offending and imprisonment patterns, before identifying some common themes across the three jurisdictions. Specifically, Indigenous women offenders in all three countries display poorer outcomes in areas such as health, education, employment, and exposure to family violence. It is argued that this subpopulation has long been overlooked, and an intersectional analysis is required to highlight the singular disadvantages experienced by Indigenous female offenders. Show more