Justice in action: Under the United States' Reagan/Bush-era anti-drug laws and mandatory minimum sentencing laws, the fastest growing segment of the US' vast prison population is women who had sufficiently poor judgment to be involved with drug dealers. Many are getting sentences in excess of 20 years, and leaving behind families.

For a woman whose husband or boyfriend is involved in the drug trade, conspiracy may consist of having drugs in the house, taking phone messages from drug associates or driving the husband or boyfriend to the bank where he makes an illicit deposit. In some cases, prosecutors have not been required to prove that a "conspirator" knew she was committing any of these acts; a finding that she should have known what her man was up to has been enough to secure a conviction.

McKinnon was a school-bus driver; her boyfriend was a major crack dealer. McKinnon took messages for her boyfriend, occasionally let his employees drop off drugs at their house and on one occasion delivered money for him. Eventually she left him, but not soon enough. He was arrested shortly thereafter, and she was convicted of conspiracy to distribute cocaine. McKinnon is serving a life sentence.

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