ABSTRACT
This chapter addresses the issue that the role of powerful female state perpetrators in the commission of some of the worst crimes of this century has largely escaped criminological attention. Social constructions and gender narratives are important to understanding the role of women as perpetrators of state violence, as in some cases, especially when the offender is a mid- to low-ranking state offender, it is the gender of the individual engaged in the violent perpetration that dwarfs all other understandings, narratives or conceptualizations of the events that transpired. The increased scholarly attention that has been paid to the issue of crimes of the state has drawn attention to a wide array of different types of state crime; the motivations and socio-historical, political and economic factors that converge to foster environments for these crimes to occur, as well as the costs suffered by those directly impacted.
