American Man & Daughter Charged With Incest As Father Daughter Relationship Turned Sexual

By Omaha World Herald

American Man & Daughter Charged With Incest As Father Daughter Relationship Turned Sexual

A US citizen and her daughter have been charged with incest

39-year-old Travis Fieldgrove, 39, and his 21-year-old daughter, Samantha Kershner, each has been charged with one count of incest in both Hall and Adams Counties. Each still was being held Friday in the Hall County Jail — Fieldgrove on $100,000 bail and Kershner on $20,000 bail.

According to a court affidavit, Grand Island police officers spoke to Fieldgrove and Kershner in September after receiving a tip about their relationship and allegations of incest.

Both admitted they were having a romantic and sexual relationship.

About three years ago, Kershner told police, she told her mother she wanted to know who her father was and meet him. Kershner had grown up only in her mother’s care.

Her mother identified Fieldgrove as Kershner’s father and arranged a meeting.

For the next three years, Fieldgrove and Kershner told police, they had a father-daughter relationship.

Both declined to tell officers how the relationship turned sexual, but said they had had sex Sept. 10.

Fieldgrove told officers he didn’t believe he was Kershner’s father because his name is not on her birth certificate.

Both agreed to provide DNA to authorities for a paternity test. Fieldgrove later claimed in a Facebook comment that the test revealed Kershner was not his daughter. However, an affidavit says test results that came back Jan. 14 showed the probability that Fieldgrove is Kershner’s father is 99.999 percent. Authorities also received a DNA swab from Kershner’s mother.

Kershner spoke to officers alone five days after the initial interview and tried to deny that she had had sex with Fieldgrove, but later recanted that denial, the affidavit said.

She also told officers that “her motivation to have sex with her father stemmed from a jealous competition with her half sister regarding who could have sex with their father,” according to the affidavit.

Fieldgrove and Kershner married at the Adams County Courthouse in Hastings on Oct. 1, the affidavit said.

If convicted on both counts, Fieldgrove and Kershner face a maximum of eight years in prison.