Survivor winner Nick Wilson withdraws Kentucky bill legalizing sex between first cousins: 'I made a mistake'

Survivor winner and Kentucky state representative Nick Wilson is speaking out after sparking heavy criticism for filing a state bill that would have legalized sex between first cousins on Tuesday. 

The lawmaker clarified the situation in a Facebook post on Wednesday, calling it a “mistake” that occurred during the creation of the bill. The Kentucky General Assembly’s website shows that he withdrew the bill the same day. 

“During the drafting process, there was an inadvertent change, which struck ‘first cousins’ from the list of relationships included under the incest statute, and I failed to add it back in,” Wilson wrote. “During today’s session, I will withdraw HB 269 and refile a bill with the ‘first cousin’ language intact.”

He explained that the bill was intended to add "sexual contact" to the state’s current incest statute. 

“Currently, incest only applies in cases of intercourse. So sexual touching/groping by uncles, stepdads, or anyone with a familial relationship is not included in incest,” Wilson specified. “My bill makes that kind of sexual contact a Class D Felony, unless the victim is under the age of 12, then it increases the penalty to a Class C Felony.”

The representative added that he was able to “catch the mistake” and refile the bill within a 24-hour period to rectify it.

“This is a bill to combat a problem of familial and cyclical abuse that transcends generations of Kentuckians,” Wilson concluded. “I understand that I made a mistake, but I sincerely hope my mistake doesn’t hurt the chances of the corrected version of the bill. It is a good bill, and I hope it will get a second chance.”

Wilson announced in a second Facebook post later on Wednesday that he had refiled the bill. “House Bill 289 adds ‘sexual contact’ to incest, applies a penalty to such conduct, and adds incest to the violent offender statute,” he wrote. “This bill makes NO other changes to current law.”

Alongside his post, Wilson included a secondary link to the Kentucky General Assembly's website, which featured a copy of the new bill that includes “first cousin” within its list of incest perpetrators.

Wilson won Survivor: David vs. Goliath in 2018 and, two years later, competed on Survivor: Winners at War before he was voted out on day 34. As a member of congress, he previously elicited controversy for supporting a bill that banned gender-affirming care for transgender youth.

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