Legal Definitions - incest

Incest refers to sexual activity or marriage between individuals who are considered too closely related by law.

These relationships typically involve close blood relatives (known as consanguinity), such as parents and children, siblings, or aunts/uncles and nieces/nephews. In many jurisdictions, the definition also extends to relationships formed through adoption, even if there is no biological connection. Incest is a serious crime in all states, regardless of whether the individuals involved consent to the activity.

• Example 1: A 45-year-old man and his 22-year-old biological daughter, who had been estranged for many years, reconnected and began a sexual relationship. Despite both being adults and consenting, their actions would constitute incest.

  Explanation: This scenario involves a direct parent-child relationship by blood, which is a universally prohibited degree of kinship for sexual or marital relations under incest laws.

• Example 2: An adult woman and her adult nephew, who is the son of her brother, developed a romantic and sexual relationship. They believed that because they were both consenting adults and not in a direct parent-child or sibling relationship, their actions were permissible.

  Explanation: Even though this is a collateral relationship (aunt and nephew) rather than a direct lineal one, most jurisdictions include such relationships within the prohibited degrees of consanguinity, making their sexual activity a crime of incest.

• Example 3: After an adopted child reached adulthood, they and their adoptive parent engaged in a sexual relationship. Both individuals were consenting adults and argued that because there was no biological connection, their relationship should not be considered incestuous.

  Explanation: Many modern incest statutes extend the prohibition to relationships formed through adoption. This is because the law aims to protect the integrity of family units and prevent potential exploitation, regardless of biological ties. Therefore, sexual relations between an adoptive parent and an adopted child, even if both are adults and consent, would typically be considered incest.