Stephanie Bush-Baskette was astonished when she read that between 1986 and 1991, black women experienced the greatest percentage increase of any group, including black males, in imprisonment for drug offenses. Not only was she stunned by the statistic, but also that the impact of the war on drugs on black women is almost never discussed. As a legislator, attorney, and gubernatorial cabinet member, Bush-Baskette is familiar with the development and implementation of public policies as well as the enactment and application of laws. This obscure fact concerning the status of black women in the criminal justice system became her touchstone as she earned a doctorate in criminal justice. In Misguided Justice, Bush-Baskette uses her expertise in the law and the legislature to investigate and then discuss the affect of the war on drugs on the incarceration of black women in the federal system. She provides an overview of what the war on drugs is; how it has impacted women and black people in general, and then focuses on black women specifically. She provides background and context regarding how the laws were implemented and how they have affected the likelihood and length of incarceration of thousands of black women for more than two decades.
