House bill would strengthen state incest laws

Legislation introduced in the state House on Wednesday would tighten Georgia’s incest laws to ban sexual relationships between relatives of “half blood.”

House Bill 534, by Rep. Joyce Chandler, R-Grayson, makes clear that it is illegal for a person to have sex with: a grandparent, grandchild, aunt, niece or nephew and uncle whether that person ins is "of the whole blood or the half blood."

State law already barred those relationships, along with siblings, parents and stepchildren, but HB 534 clarifies that those other relations do not have to be full-blood relatives to violate the law.

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Aaron Gould Sheinin

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