A White Couple Who Adopted Black Kids And Used Them As Slaves Was Sentenced To Hundreds Of Years In Prison
The fate of a white West Virginia couple, who were found guilty of abusing their five adopted Black children and forcing them to work as "slaves" on their farm, has been revealed.
On Wednesday, Jeanne Kay Whitefeather, 63, was sentenced to 215 years in prison for forced labor, human trafficking, child abuse and neglect, and violating the children's civil rights, according to a video of the sentencing hearing from the Kanawha County Circuit Court trial that was posted online.
Jeanne was found guilty of all 19 counts against her.
Her husband, Donald Lantz, 62, who was found guilty of 12 out of the 16 counts against him, including human trafficking, child abuse, forced labor, and neglect, and was sentenced to 160 years in prison.
This sentence comes after a Kanawha County jury found the pair guilty Jan. 29.
'You brought these children to West Virginia, a place that I know is 'almost heaven,' and you put them in hell,' Eighth Judicial Circuit Court Judge Maryclaire Akers said during sentencing, per WCHS. 'This court will now put you in yours. And may God have mercy on your souls, because this court will not.'
The couple reportedly adopted the five children from a shelter for unhoused and at-risk youth in 2018. At the time, Jeanne and Donald were living in Minnesota and moved to Washington State, and then later to Kanawha County, West Virginia in 2023.
In October 2023, they were arrested after a neighbor called Child Protective Services alleging that two teenagers, 14 and 16, were locked in a shed on the couple's property in Sissonville. Other neighbors claimed the children were 'forced to perform farm labor and were not permitted inside the residence,' according to court documents obtained by WCHS–TV.
When police responded to the home, the two children (brother and sister) in the shed reportedly had no running water and a portable toilet, and had been "deprived of adequate hygienic care and food." The children said they slept on the concrete floor and were locked in there for 12 hours before being found. Another girl was also found in the home.
Charleston's WCSH–TV reported that when Donald arrived home, he had another child with them and led deputies to a friend's home, where the fifth child was staying.
A 16-count indictment was filed against the couple. 'It alleges human trafficking, human rights violations, the use of forced labor,' Judge Akers said, according to West Virginia Metro News. 'Human rights violations specific to the fact that these children were targeted because of their race and they were used basically as slaves from what the indictment alleges."
The oldest child referred to the couple as "monsters" in an impact statement, while another child said, 'I will be something amazing. I will be strong and beautiful. You will always be exactly what you are — horrible.' The youngest child said they were "taught to laugh at" their siblings while witnessing the abuse.
Both Jeanne and Donald were ordered to pay $280,000 in restitution apiece to the victims. You can find more information about this case here.
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