Woman Charged With Incest After Birthing Sick Baby From Sexual Relationship With Brother

A Florida woman was arrested Friday after DNA tests concluded that her baby, born with medical issues, was the result of an incestuous relationship with her brother, according to police.

Pauline Elizabeth Martin, 33, revealed to police that she and her sibling were involved in a longstanding "romantic sexual relationship," a police report said. The two had been living in Groveland, a city about 30 miles west of Orlando, when she became pregnant with his child, the Orlando Sentinel reported.

The mother was booked into Lake County Jail and charged with incest and resisting arrest without violence, court records showed. She was released Saturday on a $3,000 bond and set to appear in court April 16.

The baby was born Nov. 21 with "severe medical problems" at a local hospital, the report said. Doctors transferred the newborn to Winnie Palmer Hospital for Children in Orlando to undergo specialized care.

The Leesburg hospital contacted the Florida Department of Children and Families because "genetic testing showed the baby to have parents that are close relatives," the Daily Commercial reported.

The agency met with the mother and father and requested the two completely fill out information for the infant's birth certificate, which they waited until late February to finish, the report read.

Detectives from the Lake County Sheriff’s said they interviewed the woman Thursday at a McDonald’s where she works as a cashier. She then revealed her five-year relationship with her brother to police.

"She said she was going to end her relationship with her brother because she knows it is wrong," the police report read. "At that time, there was probable cause for arrest."

Martin, who has a 12-year-old son by another man, also told officers March 21 was last time she had sex with her brother, the Sentinal reported.

Sgt. Fred Jones of the Lake County Sheriff’s Office told the Daily Commercial that authorities looked to interview the father of the child but have yet to get in contact with him.