From 1930 to 1950, five women's prisons were built nationally. Even this hasn't kept pace with the swelling number of women prisoners. Women's prisons are understaffed, overcrowded, lack recreation facilities, serve poor quality food, suffer chronic shortages of family planning counselors and services, obstetric and gynecological specialists, drug treatment and child care facilities, and transportation funds for family visits. A century ago researchers claimed that criminally inclined women had enlarged craniums, or malformed bones, or were natural sexual deviants. Today we laugh at this, but some experts still propagate myths about women and crime.
Women commit violent crimes for the same reasons that men do.
Two-thirds of the women jailed assaulted or killed relatives or intimates. Their victims were often spouses, lovers or boyfriends. In many cases they committed violence defending themselves against sexual or physical abuse. The women's movement encouraged assertiveness and competition among women. This weakened traditional family values.