The levels of incarceration across the United States are high. The number of female offenders has elevated considerably over the last four years. The end of the twentieth century was characterized by the increased war on drugs and strategies towards the minimization of crime. While male offenders are more likely to engage in violent crimes, there is a higher likelihood that females commit victimless crimes. These are offenses in which there are no victims, or the existing victim is just as guilty (Miller et al., 2020). This rate of incarceration of females associated with victimless crimes is mainly because they are vulnerable and can become easily overpowered.
As already described, a victimless crime is an unlawful act in which the victim does not exist or is considered as being equally guilty for the crime. Some examples of victimless crimes are drug abuse and prostitution. When a female is found guilty of drug abuse or prostitution, there are no victims being represented by the prosecutor. In the instance of drug abuse, no victim exists; but instead, the person that abuses the drug is also viewed as a victim. In the instance of prostitution, the male and female are equally guilty of engaging in the crime. The War on Drugs and Get Tough on Crime initiatives resulted in a police state within the United States. The country's justice system imprisons 4.4% of the earth’s population and 22% of the earth’s prisoners (Lassiter, 2018). The totalitarian approach towards victimless crimes, such as prostitution, has had an extensive effect on the economy of the country.
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Every prostitution exchange includes at least two individuals, a buyer and a seller. Research establishes that there is a higher likelihood for the buyers to be male. Sellers may involve those with a wide range of gender identities, but a large number of sellers are female. Yet, for participation in the same crime, prostitution, men and women receive different punishments (Ahearne, 2019). There is considerable gender inequality in the chance of receiving punishment and the degree of punishment that is established. The court-imposed punishments associated with prostitution include fines, probation, or jail sentences. There is a higher likelihood for males as opposed to females to receive fines and probation. The main disadvantage of this position is that it does not acutely assess the inequalities of gender in other victimless crimes. These crimes include the understatement of taxable income, the employment of illegal workers, speeding, illegal gambling, and hiding individuals escaping from doing the military service. In these crimes, a disproportionate balance can be observed between the male and female gender.
To establish the higher likelihood that exists for women to commit victimless crimes as compared to men, a reference to prostitution is essential. In the country, there is a higher rate of prostitutes’ arrests in comparison to their pimps. Every year, about 80,000 individuals are arrested for the crime of prostitution. 80% of this population are females, while the remaining 20% are men (Pfeffer et al., 2018). Prostitutes are easily targeted by agencies in the law enforcement sector. This targeting mainly results from what is viewed as cost-effectiveness by several authorities. Law agencies find it more cost-effective to answer prostitution ads or proposition prostitutes on the street than to use the resources to arrest the pimps (Ahearne, 2019). This is highly problematic as buyers are more than sellers, yet there is a disproportionate arrest of women. This enforcement perspective is large because there is greater ease associated with catching sellers as they spend more time in the crime.
While prostitutes can be easily caught by law enforcement, they are also vulnerable to being taken advantage of by drug dealers. Women, particularly those that are dependent on the male figures around them, have a greater level of vulnerability in being taken advantage of by drug runners (Khan, 2020). While the drug epidemic in the United States has an impact on different individuals despite their social classes, there is a higher likelihood for drug users to be females. Simple possession can result in an individual being convicted with serious consequences. The manipulation and isolation of women from their families make it easier for drug dealers to take advantage of them. Due to the isolation, they are able to redirect their survival from their families to the drug dealers (Ahearne, 2019). The manipulation conducted typically results in increased reliance of the women on their pimps and drug dealers. In most cases, prostitutes do not have access to any of the percentage of the funds that they earn. What they earn is redirected to those who control them.
The individuals that are engaged in drug running are often abusing them as well. Due to the social situation and circumstances that they find themselves in, a greater percentage of prostitutes abuse drugs to cope with the work they have to engage in and the emotional and psychological abuse they have to take part in. Most drug dealers, or pimps, utilize this strategy to ensure that their prostitutes are completely dependent on them (Ahearne, 2019). Most of these actors ensure that their subordinates become completely reliant on drugs as well. Drug abuse and reliance increase the ease associated with controlling and manipulating the women involved in these circumstances.
While women are the majority perpetrators in victimless crimes, not all of these crimes are committed by females. An instance of these crimes is gambling, where the prevalent perpetrators are men. Another form of victimless crime is suicide. Based on the National Institute of Mental Health, the suicide rate in males is about four times greater than that of females (Kerr et al., 2017). There have also been arguments that prostitution is not a victimless crime. If prostitution is not considered a victimless crime, then the belief that women commit a greater level of victimless crimes is challenged. The main base for this argument is that while a major portion of the public views the prostitute as the victim, the law does not present the same conclusion. The law establishes that in the crime of prostitution, women are considered as the perpetrators of the crime (Pfeffer et al., 2018). The main disadvantage of this opinion is that it does not involve the consideration of male involvement within the purchase of a prostitute. There is a lower likelihood for men who solicit prostitutes to be caught as opposed to the prostitute being caught by law enforcement. The number of men arrested over their involvement in the crime is significantly less in comparison to female prostitutes.
Conclusively, when it comes to prostitution enforcement, a greater percentage of women are arrested compared to men. The high percentage of female incarceration is due to their vulnerability of being controlled and overpowered. Beyond the greater likelihood of women being engaged in prostitution, they are also more likely to be taken advantage of by drug dealers and pimps. This vulnerability of women increases the likelihood that they will be taken advantage of and forced into other crimes. While other victimless crimes, such as suicide, are characterized by greater involvement of men, there is an overwhelming inclusion of women in prostitution and drug abuse. Therefore, there is a heightened rate of incarceration of women for victimless crimes due to their vulnerability.
References
Ahearne, G. L. (2019). ‘They only care when there's a murder on’: Contested perceptions of vulnerability from sex workers in prison. British Journal of Community Justice , 15 (1), 67-76.
Kerr, W. C. et al. (2017). Economic recession, alcohol, and suicide rates: comparative effects of poverty, foreclosure, and job loss. American Journal of Preventive Medicine , 52 (4), 469-475.
Khan, U. (2020). Homosexuality and prostitution: A tale of two deviancies. University of Toronto Law Journal , 70 (3), 283-305.
Lassiter, M. D. (2018). Tough and Smart: The Resilience of the War on Drugs during the Obama Administration. In The Presidency of Barack Obama (pp. 162-178). Princeton University Press.
Miller, T. R. et al. (2020). Incidence and costs of personal and property crimes in the United States, 2017. Available at SSRN 3514296 .
Pfeffer, R. et al. (2018). Gendered outcomes in prostitution arrests in Houston, Texas. Crime & Delinquency , 64 (12), 1538-1567.
