Project Title
Does Gender Affect Criminal Sentencing Outcome?
Faculty Mentor(s) Name(s)
Brooke Conaway
Abstract
The goal of the criminal justice system is to protect society by maintaining law and order while delivering fair and unbiased punishment; however, the system often fails to meet this goal. According to the United States Sentencing Commission results (2021), of all those convicted of assault, 15.9% of males and 1.5% of females received the maximum sentence length of 120 months or more. Males represent a higher percentage because they commit more crimes. There is a correlation between sex and sentence length, but does gender bias play a role? The disparity is potentially more evident in youth. Of those under the age of 21, 18.5% were given the adult sentence of 60 to 120 months and they were all male. The maximum female sentence length was limited to 24 to 59 months. Using the National Longitudinal Survey (NLS) Investigator and controlling for variables such as age, race, education, household income, past criminal record, and crime type, I find statistical significance that females are less likely to be convicted to an adult correctional institution.
Does Gender Affect Criminal Sentencing Outcome?
The goal of the criminal justice system is to protect society by maintaining law and order while delivering fair and unbiased punishment; however, the system often fails to meet this goal. According to the United States Sentencing Commission results (2021), of all those convicted of assault, 15.9% of males and 1.5% of females received the maximum sentence length of 120 months or more. Males represent a higher percentage because they commit more crimes. There is a correlation between sex and sentence length, but does gender bias play a role? The disparity is potentially more evident in youth. Of those under the age of 21, 18.5% were given the adult sentence of 60 to 120 months and they were all male. The maximum female sentence length was limited to 24 to 59 months. Using the National Longitudinal Survey (NLS) Investigator and controlling for variables such as age, race, education, household income, past criminal record, and crime type, I find statistical significance that females are less likely to be convicted to an adult correctional institution.