INCEST

Incest is committed if a person marries or purports to marry, or engages in sexual intercourse or deviate sexual intercourse, with a person he knows to be within certain defined degrees of relationship. Incest includes marriage or intercourse with ancestors or descendants by blood or adoption, stepchildren (while the marriage creating the relationship exists), brothers or sisters of the whole or half-blood, uncles, aunts, nephews or nieces of the whole blood. State v. White, 466 S.W.3d 682 (Mo. Ct. App. E.D. 2015).

For purposes of the offense of incest, the terms “sexual intercourse” and “deviate sexual intercourse” are defined in the same manner as with regard to sexual offenses generally.

When the victim is a minor, incest may amount to statutory rape or statutory sodomy; however, it has been held that incest is not a lesser included offense of those crimes, because of the extra element of the kinship, and, indeed, a defendant who sodomizes his child can be prosecuted for both sodomy (statutory or otherwise) and incest. State v. Gordon, 948 S.W.2d 673 (Mo. Ct. App. E.D. 1997); Boswell v. State, 811 S.W.2d 509 (Mo. Ct. App. S.D. 1991).

Chapter 568.020. Incest

1. A person commits the offense of incest if he or she marries or purports to marry or engages in sexual intercourse or deviate sexual intercourse with a person he or she knows to be, without regard to legitimacy, his or her:

(1) Ancestor or descendant by blood or adoption; or

(2) Stepchild, while the marriage creating that relationship exists; or

(3) Brother or sister of the whole or half-blood; or

(4) Uncle, aunt, nephew or niece of the whole blood.

2. The offense of incest is a class E felony (a term not to exceed four years).

3. The court shall not grant probation to a person who has previously been found guilty of an offense under this section.