Obstacles of Access to Justice for Women Accused of Sexual Offenses in light of the "Madonna- Whore" Theory

One of the theories in the field of criminology of women is Madonna- whore. The basis of this theory is that women have an important role as a mother and a wife during their lives. Conducting a behavior contrary to the mentioned role will prevent them from doing their traditional roles. As a result, they are worthy of condemnation. Sexual crimes are in conflict with the fundamental role of women. Therefore, when they are accused of such crimes, they will be treated severely by the criminal justice system. This paper, using a descriptive- analytical method and by conducting interviews, tries to examine some of the obstacles of access to justice for women accused of sexual offenses in the criminal process. The results show that compared to men, women are confronted with more severe criminal warrants issued against them and their appearance, dress and manner of speech have an important role in this regard.