Gendered Justice?: How Women’s Attempts to Cope With, Survive, or Escape Domestic Abuse Can Drive Them into Crime

Referencing the first UK-based research of its kind, Roberts explores how a woman’s involvement in crime can be explained or contextualised by her experience of domestic abuse. Drawing on the experiences of women serving community-based sentences, all of whom had been subjected to domestic abuse, the author analyses a variety of situations which illustrate how women can become involved in crime when their abuse perpetrator is not present, after the abusive relationship has ended or even years after the abuse has ceased, yet their actions can still be attributed to their victimisation. She also demonstrates how perpetrators of abuse use women’s involvement in the criminal justice system as a further weapon of abuse.

Built upon the foundations of women’s real-life experiences, which have real-world implications, Gendered Justice? introduces a range of recommendations and implications for both policy and practice in the field of criminal justice.