Gender Disparity in Pretrial Criminal Processing

Gender disparity in pretrial criminal processing has been an emerging social topic. Using a sample of drug sale cases from 40 of the United States’ 75 most populous counties in even-numbered years from 1990-2006 and 2009, I first evaluate whether a gender disparity in pretrial release exists. I find that females experience a greater likelihood of being granted pretrial release. Among the defendants who are granted release, females are more likely to be granted nonfinancial release but less likely to be granted financial release. Among those who are detained, females are less likely to be held on bail and denied bail. I then turn to an evaluation of the effects of initial pretrial release on future outcomes. I find females are less likely to have failure to appear and less likely to experience pretrial misconduct and pretrial rearrest