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AbstractTraditional explanations of delinquency have mostly focused on male offending. While men were the primary subjects of criminological research as well as the central focus of the justice system, gender was rarely explicitly examined, and consequently, girls often went unnoticed. Today, however, female juvenile offenders' visibility both in research and in the system has changed. This essay reviews feminist theorizing of girls' delinquency, with a concentrated focus on the 'pathways' perspective; the scope of girls' lawbreaking; and their historical and contemporary experiences inside and outside the juvenile justice system. This essay concludes with an examination of two promising girl‐specific juvenile justice initiatives.

Cover -- LATINAS IN THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM -- Title -- Copyright -- CONTENTS -- Introduction -- PART I. VICTIMIZATION TO OFFENDING: BLURRING THE BOUNDARIES -- 1. Entre Mujeres Platicamos: The Role of Informal Social Networks among Latina Survivors of Intimate Partner Violence -- 2. Latina Interpersonal Victimization: The Importance of Sexual Orientation -- 3. Nondisclosure of IPV Victimization among Disadvantaged Mexican American Young Adult Women -- PART II. LATINA OFFENDERS FROM COURT TO CORRECTIONAL INVOLVEMENT -- 4. Demasiados Problemas: A Focus on Gender, Ethnicity, and Juvenile Diversion Programming -- 5. On the Run and In/Out of the System: Understanding Latina Girls in a Southern California Barrio -- 6. The Correlates and Consequences of Maternal Efficacy among Imprisoned Women -- PART III. IMMIGRATION ENFORCEMENT, CRIMMIGRATION, AND THE DEPORTATION MACHINE -- 7. No Solamente Porque Soy Mujer: A Transnational Intersectional Framework for Understanding Latin American Women's Experiences with Crimmigration -- 8. Masking Punitive Practices: Latina Immigrants' Experiences in the U.S. Detention Complex -- 9. Adriana and Esther: Experiences of Formerly Incarcerated Migrant Women Deportees -- 10. Young Women's and Girls' Experiences in the Facilitation of Migrant Smuggling -- PART IV. COMMUNITY PROGRAMMING FOR SYSTEM-IMPACTED LATINAS -- 11. From the Streets to the Halls of Higher Education: The Case of an Undocumented Latina on the Margins of the Justice System -- 12. Maternal Racial and Ethnic Strategies as a Protective Factor against Delinquency among Latina Girls: An Exploratory Study -- 13. Mi Hermana's Keeper: Empowering Latina Youth to Improve Services That Prevent Juvenile Justice System Involvement -- 14. Xinachtli: A Healing-Informed, Gendered, and Culturally Responsive Approach with System-Involved Latinas -- Conclusion.

Scholarship in criminology over the last few decades has often left little room for research and theory on how female offenders are perceived and handled in the criminal justice system. In truth, one out of every four juveniles arrested is female and the population of women in prison has tripled in the past decade. Co-authored by Meda Chesney-Lind, one of the pioneers in the development of the feminist theoretical perspective in criminology, the subject matter of The Female Offender: Girls, Women and Crime, Third Edition redresses the balance by providing critical insight into these issues. In an engaging style, authors Meda Chesney-Lind and Lisa Pasko explore gender and cultural factors in women's lives that often precede criminal behavior and address the question of whether female offenders are more violent today than in the past. The authors provide a revealing look at how public discomfort with the idea of women as criminals significantly impacts the treatment received by this offender population