CHARLESTON, W.Va. — A pair from West Virginia has been found guilty by a jury after facing accusations of neglect and forced labor concerning their adopted children. The verdict came after eight hours of deliberation on Wednesday.
Jeanne Kay Whitefeather and Donald Ray Lantz went to trial mid-January, facing over a dozen charges which included forced labor, civil rights infringements, human trafficking, and child neglect. The couple, both Caucasian, was accused of abusing their adopted children, who are all Black, by confining them in a shed, compelling them to sleep on the floor, and forcing them to use buckets for sanitation purposes.
The jury from the Kanawha County Circuit Court found Whitefeather guilty on all 19 charges brought against her, including civil rights violations. Lantz was convicted on 12 out of 16 counts but was acquitted of four civil rights violation charges. The couple displayed little emotion during the reading of the verdict.
After the verdict, Kanawha County Prosecuting Attorney Debra Rusnak expressed her emotional response, stating that the repeated guilty verdicts deeply affected her. “These cases are significant to us — we have a personal stake in it. This is our community, and these are children from our community. If we don’t advocate for them, then who will?” she remarked during a press conference.
The couple had adopted five siblings while residing in Minnesota and later relocated to Washington in 2018 before bringing their family to West Virginia in May 2023, where the children were ages 5 to 16.
They were arrested in October 2023 after neighbors reported witnessing Lantz locking his eldest daughter and her teenage brother in a shed and then leaving the premises. A deputy had to utilize a crowbar to release them.
Upon entering the house, authorities discovered a 9-year-old girl left alone in a loft, crying and without any safety measures to prevent her from falling. Lantz had returned, bringing back one of the children, while deputies later managed to locate the couple’s youngest daughter.
The authorities described the children as being dressed in filthy clothes and reeking of body odor, with the eldest boy found barefoot and showing signs of sores on his feet. All five children were taken into custody by Child Protective Services following the couple’s arrest.
During the trial, neighbors in Sissonville testified that they rarely saw the children playing and described incidents where Lantz had the kids standing in line for chores that included lifting heavy items. Notably, once Lantz recognized the neighbors’ curiosity, the children reportedly stayed indoors.
The couple’s eldest daughter, now 18, recounted that such outdoor labor mainly took place in Washington and involved using their hands for digging. She explained that meals mostly consisted of peanut butter sandwiches served at specific times and that the children sometimes had to stand in their rooms for extended periods with their hands on their heads. She also noted that the oldest girl and boy shared a room and a bathroom bucket while holding a sheet for privacy.
In their defense, the couple and their legal representatives claimed that the chores were intended to instill a sense of responsibility in the children. Whitefeather described the shed as a “teenager hangout,” asserting that the teens had access to a key and were free to leave whenever they wished.
Whitefeather’s attorney claimed that the shed was secured to prevent the oldest boy from running away again, despite the children reportedly being unaware of where the key was — with detectives later finding it hidden on a cabinet inside the shed.
Prosecutors argued that their methods were more about exerting control rather than teaching responsibility. “The essence of their treatment was to diminish the children’s humanity,” stated Kanawha County Assistant Prosecutor Chris Krivonyak, questioning how someone could treat those they love in such a manner.
The prosecution also introduced racist text messages allegedly authored by Whitefeather, who denied writing them. The eldest daughter recounted that the children were frequently subjected to derogatory language, often hearing her stepmother use racist slurs and refusing to eat from the same dishes used by the children, referring to them as “dirty.”
Assistant Prosecutor Madison Tuck highlighted the couple’s actions, pointing directly at them as she questioned, “Do you want to know what racists look like? Look at them.”
The defense contended that the couple was simply struggling to address the children’s mental health needs, stemming from previous trauma. Lantz’s attorney criticized the state’s child welfare agencies for failing to provide adequate support despite multiple requests from the family.
Furthermore, Tuck pointed out that the couple never sought assistance for the eldest boy, who is currently in full-time care in a psychiatric facility. The couple’s treatment reportedly made the children’s conditions worse, according to a forensic psychologist testifying for the prosecution.
In closing arguments, Whitefeather’s lawyer, Mark Plants, argued that the couple’s actions only reflected poor parenting choices, asserting, “They’re just rural individuals managing farm duties. This had nothing to do with race or the concept of forced labor.”
Whitefeather potentially faces a prison term of up to 215 years, while Lantz could see up to 75 years behind bars. Both defendants are scheduled to be sentenced on March 19.
