Married First Cousins Expecting Baby Might Face Prison Time (In Utah)

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Michael Lee and Angela Peang are expecting their first child together, but the unusual nature of their relationship means that the two could face incarceration when Peang gives birth. Peang and Lee of Eagle Mountain, Utah, aren't just husband and wife -- they're first cousins. (To give you a better idea of the family tree: Peang's father is the older brother of Lee's mother.) Although the couple married in Colorado, where it's legal for first cousins to wed, that isn't the case in their home state of Utah, and their unborn child poses a legal risk to what the couple describes as a happy marriage.

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Peang's pregnancy serves as irrefutable proof that the two have had intercourse, leaving them vulnerable to legal action, according to the New York Post.

Utah's ban on sex between cousins has to do with the proven risk of birth defects -- which are pretty serious, according to researchers. In fact, a study conducted by the Journal of Genetic Counseling found that health issues such as spina bifida or cystic fibrosis were found in 3% to 4% of all babies, but for babies born to first cousins, those risks go up by 1.7 to 2.8 percentage points.

Still, the couple, both 38, believe that their soon-to-be son will beat those odds.

“We had to do our due diligence because everyone was saying to us, ‘No, don’t do that,’ and ‘It’s so risky and irresponsible,'” Peang, who is due May 22, told the Post. “So we did genetic testing and found out it was OK for us to parent together.”

The couple also pointed out that marriage between couples who are first cousins is legal in more than half of U.S. states, including New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, California, and Colorado, as well as Canada and Europe. So when it comes to their union, Lee and Peang have a strict “mind your own business” policy.

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