Chapter 1

A Profile of Federally Sentenced Women: Who Are They?

... understanding the contexts of women’s lives, both in the general population and in the criminal justice system, is an important first step in developing gender-responsive policy and practice.⁶

Canada’s prison population is largely unseen and unknown. Women prisoners in particular tend to be invisible to society, both because of their relatively small numbers and because their crimes are rarely reported in the news. Some observers have also noted that federally sentenced women are largely “invisible” to prison administrators in critical ways and that their needs and interests continue to be unmet in a correctional system designed primarily for federally sentenced men.

However, it is increasingly being recognized that some of the needs of women in conflict with the law are different from those of their male counterparts. The Canadian Human Rights Act requires federally regulated organizations such as the Correctional Service of Canada to accommodate individual needs and differences, rather than treating people identically or responding to them based on stereotypes and perceptions. For federally sentenced women, this is impossible without a clear understanding of their needs and how they are different from male offenders. This chapter therefore presents a profile of Canadian women offenders serving federal sentences.

1.1. Basic Characteristics of the Inmate Population

The difference in the relative size of the male and female inmate populations is striking. Women account for less than 5% of all federal offenders and proportionately more women offenders are newcomers to the federal correctional system. In 2001, 82% of federally sentenced women were serving their first federal sentence, compared with 62% of federally sentenced men.⁷
As of July 2003, 45% of federally sentenced women (374 out of 822) were in prison and 55% (448) were out on bail or under community supervision.⁸ By contrast, 61% (12,221 out of 20,029) of federally sentenced men were incarcerated in institutions. The proportion of federally sentenced Aboriginal inmates in prison is higher than for non-Aboriginal inmates. As of July 27, 2003, 60% (110 out of 184) of federally sentenced Aboriginal women offenders and 69% (2,158 out of 3,143) of federally sentenced Aboriginal male offenders were in prison.⁹

Because of the nature of their crimes, women offenders tend to receive shorter sentences than their male counterparts: during the same period in 2000-2001, 36% of federally sentenced women were serving sentences of three years or less compared with 19% of federally sentenced men.¹⁰

1.2. Aboriginal Status

The most disturbing statistics relate to the disproportionate number of Aboriginal women in federal prisons. Although Aboriginal women account for only 3% of the female population in Canada, on July 27, 2003, they made up 29% of the women in federal correctional facilities.¹¹ Aboriginal men are also over-represented in federal correctional facilities, but their relative disproportion is much smaller. As of July 27, 2003, they represented 18% of male offenders in federal prison facilities.¹²

Meanwhile, the number of Aboriginal women sentenced to federal institutions is increasing, and at a rate that exceeds that of Aboriginal men. From 1996-1997 to 2001-2002, the number of federally sentenced Aboriginal women increased by 36.7%, compared with 5.5% for Aboriginal men.¹³

These statistics are of particular concern because, as the Aboriginal Initiatives Branch of the Correctional Service has noted, the Aboriginal population is the fastest growing population in Canada. Many services, including correctional services, must respond to this demographic trend.

1.3. Age

The majority of federal offenders are admitted to prison in their 20s and 30s, but the average age of admission is younger for Aboriginal offenders, including Aboriginal women: 66% of Aboriginal women in federal prisons are between the ages of 20 and 34 compared with 56% of federally sentenced women as a whole.¹⁴

1.4. Family Status

Two-thirds of federally sentenced women are mothers and they are more likely than male offenders to have primary childcare responsibilities.¹⁵

1.5. Abuse
 
Both male and female inmates tend to have histories of childhood trauma and abuse. But among women, Aboriginal offenders make up a far higher proportion of the abused.

A 1989 survey found an overwhelming proportion of federally sentenced women reporting prior abuse (80%).¹⁶ But in that population, Aboriginal women offenders made up a disproportionate share of the abused; 90% of Aboriginal women in prison reported having been physically abused, compared with 68% of federally sentenced women. And the proportion of federally sentenced women reporting prior sexual abuse was 53%. The rate of sexual abuse for federally sentenced Aboriginal women was 61%.¹⁷

1.6. Social Condition

Federally incarcerated women and men tend to have lower educational attainment than the Canadian adult population as a whole. While more than 80 percent of adult females have progressed beyond Grade 9, for female offenders the figure is closer to 50 percent.¹⁸

Female offenders have much lower employment rates than male offenders: in 1996, 80% of the women serving time in a federal facility were unemployed at the time of admission compared to 54% of the male offenders.¹⁹

Although there is no data on the proportion of federally sentenced women who have worked in the sex trade, it is widely accepted that many do or have done so. Prostitutes protecting themselves against assault or unwanted sexual advances by a customer are among the 9% of federally sentenced women who commit homicide as an act of self-defence.²⁰

1.7. Health and Disability

Drug and alcohol addictions are widespread among federally sentenced offenders. Almost 70% of male and female offenders have problems with alcohol or drug abuse.²¹ But alcohol and drugs tend to figure more prominently in the lives and criminal offences of incarcerated women, for whom income-generating crimes such as fraud, shoplifting, prostitution and robbery are often perpetrated to
support their addictions.²²

Some of the most significant differences between female and male inmates are the prevalence of diagnosed mental illness, self-abuse and suicide attempts. Federally incarcerated women are three times as likely to suffer from depression as are their male counterparts.²³ Women are also more likely than men are to take part in self-destructive behaviours such as slashing and cutting.²⁴