"Despite greater social awareness and intense media coverage of high-profile sexual assault cases, the vast majority of such crimes still go either unreported or unprosecuted. Why? The answer lies in the patchwork of laws governing such crimes and the often sexist and racist roots that underlie them. This book discusses the history of sexual violence laws, the social and media forces that drive the laws, and the progress American society has made in recognizing and punishing such behavior. The chapters cover a range of subjects including federal regulations such as Title IX and Title VII, sentencing, children and sexual violence, pornography, and evidence, as well as the evolution of legal concepts such as force and consent"--

"While many claim that being a mom is the most important job in the world, in reality, motherhood in the United States is becoming harder. From pre-conception, through pregnancy and while parenting, women are held to ever-higher standards and finding themselves punished - both socially and criminally - for failing to live up to these norms. This book uncovers how women of all ethnic backgrounds and socio-economic statuses have been interrogated, held against their will, and jailed for a rapidly expanding list of offenses such as falling down the stairs while pregnant or letting a child spend time alone in a park, actions that were not considered criminal a generation ago. While poor mothers and moms of color are targeted the most, all moms are in jeopardy, whether they realize it or not. Women and mothers are disproportionately held accountable compared to men and fathers who do not see their reproduction policed and almost never incur charges for "failure to protect." The gendered inequality of prosecutions reveals them to be more about controlling women than protecting children. Using a reproductive justice lens, Caitlin Killian analyzes how and why mothers are on a precipice and what must change to prevent mass penalization and instead support mothers and their children."--

"No comparable volume collects in one place the various rules, doctrines, policies, and ideological positions that prevent our criminal justice system from pursuing and achieving justice"--