LGBT and the Criminal Justice System

Transcription

1 LGBT and the Criminal Justice System Addressing the gaps: a book for practitioners and students LGBT Workers conference 20th May 2015 kwilson@dmu.ac.uk

2 The criminal Justice System should view all people no matter their race, gender or social class fairly. We know this is not the case There is very little research regarding LGBT people and the Criminal Justice System. What there is concerns us.

3 Structure of the book 1. Setting the context: definitions and terminology (CK) 2. Legislation and criminalisation (KW) 3. LGBT people as victims of crime (CK) 4. LGBT people as offenders (KW) 5. LGBT people as staff (KW) 6. Transgendered people in the CJS (CK) 7. Domestic violence and abuse (CK) 8. The international context (KW) 9. Agency response to LGBT issues (CK & KW)

4 Setting the context: definitions and terminology The importance of language The need to enable practitioners/students to have words to express and explain The language used to define LGBT communities is complex and dynamic changing contexts Chosen acronym LGBT as an umbrella definition Silence as an inhibitor of progress

5 The relationship between LGBT people and the CJS history and legislation Chakraborti and Garland (2009) unlike many other aspects of discrimination, the gay community s private and sexual lives have been subjected to police scrutiny as well as legislative and parliamentary intervention. Stonewall (2013), the first mention of a punishment for homosexuality in English law was in Old Bailey (2013)-between 1679 and 1772 there were 1072 convictions for sodomy and 96 for Assault with Sodomite Intentions. Theft by Extortion against homosexual men. 45 hangings between 1703 and 1829 in Navy. During the late 17 th and 18 th Century - waves of prosecutions against homosexual men. Often the result of self-appointed groups who advocated for the moral savings of the day. Between 1720 and 1740 nearly every week one or more gay men were sent to the pillory. Crompton (1980) questions if lesbians have had impunity from capital laws during the 13 th to 18 th century. In Spain, France, Italy and Germany it was illegal to be a lesbian and there were a number of incidents of lesbians being punished by hanging, drowning and dismemberment for their sexuality

6 There continued to be trawls of lesbian and gay bars by the police. 30,000 men were convicted between 1967 and 2003 for behaviour that if their partner had been female would not have been prosecuted (Bedell 2007). Despite some of the very real issues LGBT communities were emerging in several European cities during the inter war period, notably Berlin, London and Paris (Weeks 2010). Kinsey Sexual practices in US- Homosexuality more wide spread and introduced notion of a continuum. Impact of legislation had consequences for women - If they did appear before the law, likely be for impersonating a man and would be prosecuted for deception or fraud. Moran (2000) notes that women s sexuality and place in the family during the 18 th and 19 th century was policed by private rather than criminal law. LGBT people reluctant to approach the police in cases of extortion. This had led to a historical mistrust between lesbian and gay people and the CJS in general and the police in particular. It is impossible to assess the number of men who committed suicide. For those men whose suicide attempts failed, Horsfall (1988) notes, some were prosecuted for being both homosexual and attempting suicide.

7 Legislation and criminalisation The Criminal Law Amendment Act introduced in 1885 creating the offence of gross indecency, making all sexual acts between two men illegal. It became known as the Blackmailers Charter. 1950s saw a rapid rise and rigorous prosecution of homosexuals by Home Office (Stonewall 2013). In 1952, 4,000 gay men appeared in court. Many were subject to supposed cures, which included lobotomies, aversion therapy and chemical castration (Fish 2012) there were 1069 men in prison for homosexual acts. In 1967, 10 years post Wolfenden, sexual activity between two males over the age of 21 was decriminalized. Movement towards establishing lesbian and gay rights increased in pace during the 1970s. In New York, 1970 first lesbian and gay pride march which commemorated the Stonewall riots. This idea of having pride in identity against the back drop of guilt, condemnation and prosecutions was new for the community. The American Psychiatric Association did not declassify homosexuality as a mental illness until In 1992 the World Health Organization followed suit.

8 In Britain we have seen a raft of legislation in recent years that will help the LGBT community achieve equality. This has included areas around equal age of consent, employment law, access to goods and services, rights to be named on birth certificates, gender re-assignment, protection from direct and indirect discrimination, harassment and victimization. There is still quite a way to go when we consider instances of Hate Crime, the rate of suicide amongst lesbian and gay teenagers and the vilification of transgender people all of which still occur on a regular basis. Does equality mean treating people the same?

9 LGBT people as offenders There is almost no data on LGBTQ offenders (Woods 2014) Lack of engagement and interest by criminologists What glimpses we do get, indicate that there are issues in the CJS that needs further examination.

10 Some factors identified as problematic for LGBT people are also identified as significant re pathways to offending; family or/and peer rejection, alcohol/drug use, negative school experiences, vulnerability, homelessness. Research is emerging from America suggests that LGBTQ youth who experience discrimination in the school setting or bias in their treatment are more likely to be the subject of criminal sanctions (Snapp, S et al 2015). The pipeline seems to occur because of the establishment of zero tolerance approaches in schooling which punish vague and minor infractions of discipline and affect marginalised youths disproportionately. LGBT youth also constitute a school-to-prison pipeline group and that they are overrepresented in juvenile detention facilities. It appears that the ways in which LGBTQ youth try to protect themselves from bullying, also constitute breaks in school discipline. Experiences of homophobic bullying make LGBTQ youth more susceptible to truancy, assault and disorderly conduct charges (Majd, Marksamer, & Reyes, 2009).

11 In effect, LGBTQ youth may be blamed, ignored, or even punished for behaviours that should elicit support rather than punishment from school staff. Examples of disproportionate responses included - Parents being called in when same sex students were seen holding hands or being called into the heads office when rumours of same-sex relationships spread throughout a school. real or imagined. Both girls and boys who do not display gender stereotypical behaviour reported being harshly punished. Pupils who defended themselves when it became clear that their rights were not going to be upheld reported that this can lead to suspension and expulsion. Also in America Himmelstein & Bruckner s (2011) study has documented that LGBTQ pupils, particularly gender non-conforming girls and BME youth are more likely to be expelled from school than heterosexual youth for similar infractions. LGBTQ youth are twice as likely as their heterosexual peers to be detained by the police for non-violent offenses such as running away, prostitution, and truancy (Garnette, Irvine, Reyes, & Wilber, 2011).

12 They also reflect a number of intersecting factors that can contribute to their pathways out of school: race, compromised mental health, learning challenges, and family problems or homelessness. Homelessness has been identified as the crux of the pipeline. Certainly we have come to the point where researchers understand the need to add sexuality and gender to the body of work on the school-to-prison pipeline. We do not know how applicable some of this is to the British context but for example The Albert Kennedy Trust in the UK identify the large number of young LGBT youth who are becoming homeless. Their experiences of sex for payment, coercive sex and their reluctance to approach mainstream providers.

13 Kathryn Farr (2000) research on women in the US on death row. One of her main contentions is that a hetero-feminine image is important in engendering chivalry and therefore the possibility of a more lenient approach to particular woman. Farr looks at five women in particular where lesbianism was fused with other gender-deviant images to produce, she believes a representation that was compatible with a death sentence. Anderson (1996) is amongst those who put the number of lesbians on death row as close to half and Brownworth (1992) at close to a third. Goldstein (2001) in Queer on death Row argues that gay men may also experience prejudice, which if they become defendants in murder cases, can result in them receiving a death sentence. Smith - LGBT people are notoriously badly treated throughout the CJS, from being mocked by police officers and court officers. On rare occasions a judge may treat LGBT defendants with dignity and respect (Smith 2002).

14 CJS agencies and staff This chapter will examine the views and practice of both LGBT and heterosexual staff who work within the Criminal Justice System (CJS). Police Stonewall index - still some units feel unwelcome in. Prosecution/defence services, zero tolerance. Courts- difficult to assess, if we apply evidence on women then lesbians would be doubly discriminated against (good mothers, good wives). NOMS Prisons lesbian invisibility in research Probation Private/public lives

15 The international context This chapter identifies countries across the globe and assesses the position of the LGBT community in terms of rights and what is driving current debates. Europe -New forms of criminalisation of LGBT people are increasing through the spread of anti-propaganda laws and some countries adopting laws and policies to restrict the human rights of LGBT people. Commonwealth which consists of 54 member states, 43 of these states criminalize homosexuality. How are organisations such as the Commonwealth and Olympic addressing discrimination? Rise of religious right in US and its influence world wide. Iran carries out the second highest number of trans operations in the world.

16 LGBT people as victims LGBT people can be victims of any crime LGBT people can be victims of hate crime Specific resources and support services for LGBT victims are limited

17 Transgendered people and the CJS There is very limited research evidence Information from a range of sources about the general experiences of trans people in the UK and making the links Some of UK s biggest police forces have recorded a rise in transphobic hate crime - There is evidence of sexual abuse of trans people in prisons There is now policy The care and management of transsexual prisoners PS1 07/2011 (Min of Justice)

18 Domestic violence and abuse (DVA) in same sex relationships Most models of DV are heterosexual Resistance to recognising and acknowledging abuse in same-sex relationships Stereotypes and assumptions Fear of being outed Internalised homophobia

19 Research Why more research is needed Why monitoring is important Why models of best practice are needed Why we need to move out of silence on these issues Do you have any evidence you can share?