SISSONVILLE, W.Va. (TCN) — A couple faces a total of over three centuries behind bars combined for forcing their adopted children to perform labor and locking them in a shed.
The Kanawha County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office announced Jan. 29 that 63-year-old Jeanne Whitefeather and 65-year-old Donald Lantz were convicted of human trafficking, civil rights, and child abuse charges. They are scheduled to be sentenced in March, and Whitefeather faces a maximum of 215 years, while Lantz faces a maximum of 140 years in state prison.
On Oct. 2, 2023, Kanawha County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to the 200 block of Cheyenne Lane, where they forced entry into a barn and reportedly located a male and a female juvenile locked in a 20-by-14-foot room without running water or a proper bathroom. They also reportedly didn’t have access to adequate hygienic care or food.
The caller who requested a welfare check at the address believed the victims were locked in the shed for days at a time, WCHS-TV reports. The children were reportedly wearing dirty clothes and smelled of body odor. Authorities allegedly observed a single table and chair but no beds. Deputies reportedly said the shed’s floor was made of concrete, and there were plywood walls with a camera placed in a corner.
According to The Associated Press, a deputy used a crowbar to get the children out. Inside the main house, officials reportedly located a 9-year-old girl alone crying in a loft without any protection from falling. Lantz allegedly returned to the residence with a fourth child, and deputies were led to a fifth juvenile. The Associated Press reports that the oldest boy wasn’t wearing shoes and had apparent sores on his feet. The children were turned over to Child Protective Services following the couple’s arrest.
Neighbors reportedly testified in court that Lantz forced the kids to stand in line and perform difficult yard tasks such as lifting heavy items. Lantz allegedly mainly kept the children inside after he noticed the neighbors.
The couple’s oldest daughter, who is now 18 years old, said in court that some of the victims were ordered to dig using their hands, The Associated Press reports. The daughter reportedly testified that the children ate peanut butter sandwiches at scheduled times, and some of them had to stand in their rooms for hours at a time and keep their hands on their heads. The girl allegedly shared a room with a male child, and they used the same bucket as a toilet.
According to The Associated Press, Lantz argued in court that he and Whitefeather assigned chores to the children to teach them about responsibility. Whitehead allegedly said the shed was a “teenager hangout,” and they had a key and were able to leave whenever they wanted.
Detectives allegedly found the key to the shed on a cabinet out of sight, and the children didn’t know where it was. Prosecutors believe the couple wasn’t trying to teach their adopted kids about responsibility, but they were trying to hold power over them.
According to The Associated Press, prosecutors found racist text messages from Whitefeather. The oldest daughter reportedly said Whitefeather used racist language, and the adopted children, who are Black, were cursed at “all the time.”
The girl testified Whitefeather wouldn’t eat off the same plates the children used, and she referred to the victims as “dirty.”
Whitefeather’s attorney, Mark Plants, said, “These are farm people that do farm chores. It wasn’t about race. It wasn’t about forced labor.”
Whitefeather’s attorney also argued the eldest boy had tried to run away from home, so the couple kept the lock on the shed so he wouldn’t try to escape again.
The defense claimed the couple struggled because the children suffered from mental health issues, abuse, and trauma from their biological home, and Lantz’s attorney said the state’s child welfare agency “dropped the ball the most in this case.” However, prosecutors said the couple never tried to get help for the eldest boy, who is now receiving psychiatric care, The Associated Press reports.
A forensic psychologist testified that the children’s conditions worsened because of the couple’s actions.
According to The Associated Press, the defendants adopted the five siblings when they lived in Minnesota. They reportedly moved to a farm in Washington in 2018 before settling in West Virginia in May 2023.