Mother and Daughter Face Incest Charges After Getting Married in Oklahoma

A woman and her daughter were charged with incest after getting married in Oklahoma this year, authorities said.

Patricia Ann Spann, 43, and her daughter Misty Velvet Dawn Spann, 25, were married in March, police learned last month while conducting a child welfare investigation. Authorities later found out Patricia Spann had married her son in 2008, who filed for annulment 15 months later citing “incest.”

The motivation behind the marriages is unclear.

Both women appeared in Stephens County district court on Wednesday, the Associated Press reported. Under Oklahoma law, marriage between close relatives is considered incest whether or not a sexual relationship exists.

Patricia Spann told child service investigators that she had lost custody of three children, who were adopted by their paternal grandmother. She reunited with her daughter two years ago, the AP reported. Spann said she thought it was OK to marry her daughter because her name wasn’t on Misty Spann’s birth certificate.

Both women are being held on $10,000 bonds.

Write to Mahita Gajanan at mahita.gajanan@time.com.