Jessica C. Moronez

This project traces the diverse portrayals of women’s perceived criminality in the United States by using historical documents to highlight women's criminal history dating back to the mid-seventeenth century. First, the research compares women and men by focusing on male offenders and female offenders. Female offenders are often sensationalized for violating gender roles related to virtue and piety, which paint their offenses as unnatural or abnormal while men’s offenses are often seen as unremarkable or normal. Next, the research uncovers the portrayals of criminality among women by considering how offenses committed by women of color are frequently regarded as expected which creates justifications for prejudicial treatment based on race and gender. Through qualitative analysis, the project reveals such biases while presenting counter narratives to provide a humanistic and holistic view of women offenders. The research findings are available through shared lesson plans and lecture material presented to incarcerated students at California Institution for Women prison though Chaffey College’s Rising Scholars Program.