Adoptive parents in West Virginia face charges for suspected enslavement of their adopted Black kids.
In early August 2025, a white couple from West Virginia, Jeanne Kay Whitefeather and Donald Lantz, were convicted and sentenced for human trafficking and forced labor involving their adopted Black children. The couple received a combined 375 years in prison.
The trial, which had been scheduled for 9 September 2024, concluded with the jury finding the couple guilty of mistreatment, neglect, and forced labor, including locking the children in a shed for extended periods. The case received substantial media coverage, highlighting the severity of the abuse and the heavy sentences imposed.
The case came to light after a wellness check in October 2024 revealed the deplorable living conditions of the children on the couple's Sissonville property. Inside the main residence, a 9-year-old girl was found by police, while two teenagers, a 14-year-old boy and a 16-year-old girl, were discovered locked in a decrepit shed with no lights or running water. They reported being locked in for 12 hours and given minimal food.
The children recounted continuous abuse at both the West Virginia home and the couple's other residence in Washington state. The boy was found with open sores on his bare feet. Despite arguments that the bond money might have come from legitimate sources, prosecutors maintained that its intended use was linked to human trafficking and forced labor.
The couple had managed to pay a $400,000 bond for their release from jail in February, but Judge Akers raised the couple's bond after prosecutors argued that it was likely obtained through trafficking profits. Lantz and Whitefeather were taken back into custody, and their Sissonville home was sold for $295,000 on 28 March. The couple also sold an 80-acre ranch in Tonasket, Washington, for $725,000 on 2 February.
Judge Akers, in her ruling, stated that the living conditions were among the worst she had ever encountered. Whitefeather claimed the teens "liked" the shed, referring to it as a "clubhouse." However, the court did not find this justification sufficient for the mistreatment and neglect of the children.
The couple has pleaded not guilty to more than a dozen charges, including human trafficking of a minor, use of a minor in forced labor, and child neglect creating a substantial risk of serious bodily injury or death. The current status is that the trial has finished, and the couple has been judged and sentenced to lengthy prison terms for their crimes.
The court proceedings, which began on a scheduled date in September 2024, culminated in September 2025, with Jeanne Kay Whitefeather and Donald Lantz receiving lengthy prison sentences for their convictions related to human trafficking, mistreatment, and forced labor of their adopted Black children. This high-profile case, receiving extensive coverage in both general-news and crime-and-justice sectors, was brought to light following a wellness check in October 2024 that exposed the children's deplorable living conditions.
