Exactly. Juries, and especially judges, are used to dealing with bad males all the time. Often, the male defendants can be made to look quite scary, and a jury wants to save themselves and people they love from such males. Judges deal with the kind of scum we see on every episode of "COPS".
In order for a woman to get prison time, she has to be REALLY scary, someone who just snapped at a romantic rival is not threatening to the average jury member. Add in the mother and astronaut hero worship factors, and you've got either an acquittal, or a conviction on a lesser charge.
Add in the mother and astronaut hero worship factors, and you’ve got either an acquittal, or a conviction on a lesser charge.
Unless you’ve dealt with a nutcase who has been given a leg up for PC/Affirmative Action reasons.
;-)