WV - Donald Lantz Jeanne Whitefeather charged after adoptive children found locked in filthy barn room - October 3, 2023

[Ebon]

Adoptive parents arrested after children found locked in barn dirty and reeking

Adoptive parents were arrested after deputies found two children reeking of body odor locked in a barn room with no running water or bathroom and a third child locked in the main home alone.

lawandcrime.com

Adoptive parents in West Virginia face criminal charges after deputies found two children in dirty clothes and reeking of body odor locked in a barn room with concrete floors and no beds and a third child locked in the main home alone in an unprotected loft about 15 feet high.

Donald Lantz, 63, and Jeanne Whitefeather, 61, were arrested on felony charges of gross child neglect after deputies made the discovery on Monday, the Kanawha County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release

Deputies forced their way into the barn and found a boy and a girl locked in a 20×14-foot room. A third child was found locked in a room in the home.

The children had no means to get out of the barn on their own, authorities said. There was no running water, no bathroom facilities, and the children were “obviously deprived of adequate hygienic care and food,” the news release said. In the home, deputies found a third small child up in a loft, alone.

 

[borndem]

At least those poor children are alive. SMH.
Another horror show.
"Adoptive parents," why, why, why? Did they get tired of being "parents" or what? Drugs?
So glad it was reported before these children starved to death or some other horror infected them like or rats or snakes, etc., badly enuff to cause their deaths.
At least the two had each other during their time in essentially a dungeon. Hoping the other child is a bit better off.

Hoping that Child Protective Services will give good care, good food, clean beds and baths, gentle attention and a medical check-up.

 

[Mert]

Two people charged after children found locked in Sissonville barn, deputies say

Two people have been charged after Kanawha County deputies said they found children locked in a barn in Sissonville.

wchstv.com

“The caller also alleged the children were made to do farm work and not allowed in the home.
Deputies said they attempted to contact Lantz and Whitefeather for about two hours before forcing entry into the barn where the teenage children were found.

 

[renah]

What in the h*ll.

People suck.

 

[Mert]

Deputies responded to address two separate times before children were discovered in a barn

Eyewitness News has learned Kanawha County Sheriff’s Office responded to the same address two separate times before Monday’s discovery. When deputies responded

wchstv.com

“Neighbors made similar 911 calls in late May and June. Law enforcement said the third and final call was different because the parents were not home when first responders arrived. Lester also said the third call was different because it was made immediately after someone saw something suspicious.”

 

[tlcya]

Kanawha County Sheriff’s deputies say a complaint was made back in May and a second complaint was made in September -- both with similar concerns.

In both cases, deputies say no wrongdoing was found when they observed the children in the home and, in one instance, they were eating dinner.

At the time deputies, went there for the third complaint both suspects -- Donald Ray Lantz, 63, and Jeanne Kay Whitefeather, 61 -- were not home.

Deputies also told WSAZ the family moved to West Virginia recently from the state of Washington, and all five adopted children were home-schooled.

Deputies say there are no prior criminal records of the two adults in West Virginia.
More details released in case involving children found locked inside part of barn

According to the Kanawha County Sheriff's Office, police received a 911 call just after 5:46 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 2, 2023, regarding the welfare of the children. Deputy H.K. Burdette responded to the 200 block of Cheyenne Lane in Sissonville, where she found the two sibling minors — a 16-year-old girl and a 14-year-old boy — "locked inside a barn."
[snip]
The teen girl told deputies they were last given food at approximately 6 a.m. Monday morning and had been locked inside the shed since. She also said this was a regular occurrence for the siblings and that they were not allowed inside the house, per WSAZ.

Deputies said the 20x14 shed had no windows and contained a single table and chair, no beds and no access to running water. A criminal complaint reported by WSAZ states there was an RV toilet sitting on the floor on a black tarp, but no functioning toilet. The floors of the shed were concrete, and the walls were plywood. Deputies observed a camera in the top left corner of the room, the complaint states, according to WSAZ.
[snip]
Whitefeather reportedly admitted to deputies that the children were left in the shed and allegedly said "they like it."
West Virginia man, woman arrested after teens found locked in shed

“We’ve learned that they are parents of five adopted children. Three of those adopted children were at the residence, two at the barn and one inside the primary residence, and the other two, the detectives are following up on to check their welfare and wellbeing and working on getting them removed as well,” said Lester.

Neighbors tell 13 News several animals including wallabies, donkey, sheep and dogs were also found on the property. According to Lester, deputies are working on finding a home for those animals.
https://www.wowktv.com/news/west-virginia/kanawha-county-wv/man-woman-arrested-after-children-found-in-locked-barn-in-sissonville/

All I can say is, I hope LE find those other two adopted kids and they aren't buried under a barn somewhere in Washington

 

[NeverPersonal]

At least those poor children are alive. SMH.
Another horror show.
"Adoptive parents," why, why, why? Did they get tired of being "parents" or what? Drugs?
So glad it was reported before these children starved to death or some other horror infected them like or rats or snakes, etc., badly enuff to cause their deaths.
At least the two had each other during their time in essentially a dungeon. Hoping the other child is a bit better off.

Hoping that Child Protective Services will give good care, good food, clean beds and baths, gentle attention and a medical check-up.

Two people charged after children found locked in Sissonville barn, deputies say

Two people have been charged after Kanawha County deputies said they found children locked in a barn in Sissonville.

wchstv.com

“The caller also alleged the children were made to do farm work and not allowed in the home.
Deputies said they attempted to contact Lantz and Whitefeather for about two hours before forcing entry into the barn where the teenage children were found.

So they adopted kids to have free labor and to get money from the state. DISGUSTING behavior that the death penalty should be allowed for, IMO.

 

[NeverPersonal]

Two people charged after children found locked in Sissonville barn, deputies say

Two people have been charged after Kanawha County deputies said they found children locked in a barn in Sissonville.

wchstv.com

“The caller also alleged the children were made to do farm work and not allowed in the home.
Deputies said they attempted to contact Lantz and Whitefeather for about two hours before forcing entry into the barn where the teenage children were found.

God bless the caller.

 

[Mert]

God bless the caller.

Yes, to possibly have to call over and over. It sounds like this went on much longer than it should have.

 

[wendybtn]

So they adopted kids to have free labor and to get money from the state. DISGUSTING behavior that the death penalty should be allowed for, IMO.

I think once you adopt a child, their maintenance and upkeep is on you. But that cost was evidently very low in this case.

 

[tlcya]

One child was with Lantz and Whitefeather as they arrived and another was with a separate caretaker.

All five children were placed in the immediate custody of Child Protective Services, Lester said.

CNN has been unable to determine if Lantz and Whitefeather have obtained a lawyer at this time. They are being held at South Central Regional Jail in Charleston, West Virginia, on a $200,000 bond each.

Sissonville is about 15 miles north of Charleston.
The adoptive parents of 2 children found locked inside a barn in West Virginia are facing felony child neglect charges, authorities say

Amen! the other two adopted children were located and are safe!

 

[Regal Beagle]

Why move so far across the country with five adopted kids? Friends/family in the area? Are the kids biologically related?

 

[Shekkiec]

This shows the barn 225 Cheyenne Ln, Charleston, WV 25312 | Zillow

 

[j_in_c]

Why move so far across the country with five adopted kids? Friends/family in the area? Are the kids biologically related?

Purely hypothetical on my part, but I wonder if they had been reported in Washington state to CPS.

I wish CPS from state to state could share information, some of these stories remind of crimes in the 1970s where police didn't work together outside of their local jurisdictions.

 

[CrimeDawg123]

"A white couple from rural West Virginia is back behind bars after a judge revoked the initial bond and raised it to $500,000 apiece — more than double the amount they faced last year when police arrested the pair on charges of locking their adopted Black children in a barn and forcing them to work as “slaves.”

Donald Ray Lantz, 63, and Jeanne Kay Whitefeather, 62, both of Sissonville, were ordered to reappear in Kahanwha County Court on June 11, more than eight months after each posted a $200,000 bond following their arrests in October. "

'It's Horrifying': West Virginia Judge Revokes Bond of White Couple Who Reportedly Kept Their Black Adopted Children Locked In Shed In 'Despicable' Conditions with No Water, Lights and Little Food

A white couple from rural West Virginia is back behind bars after a judge revoked the initial bond and raised it to $500,000 apiece — more than double the

atlantablackstar.com

 

[borndem]

Throw the book at 'em, Danno.
How many laws have they broken? Too damm many. WTH were they thinking?
Hoping they are still in lock-up and will be there until a trial. I'm betting the jail they are in now (if they still are) is much, much better than the places where the children were imprisoned. Grrrrr.

 

[Mert]

I believe it has been reported that they moved to WV after an investigation may have began in Washington state.

*My opinion

 

[ChatteringBirds]

There needs to be an investigation regarding how these children were permanently placed with them.
Did they treat them well just until the adoptions were finalized? They clearly never bonded with nor loved these children.

I just wonder when the clues and "red flags" began to appear. Are they estranged from all of their relatives?

Thank you to the person who kept calling to seek help for these kids.

 

[spyblond]

White couple accused of locking Black adopted kids in shed are back in prison

New 16-count indictment against the West Virginia couple includes a human trafficking of a minor charge

www.independent.co.uk

I do think it is important to also directly call out the racism and white supremacy that is at play, which makes this case even more insidious.
From the article:
"The couple sought out five Black children to adopt and forced them to do labor because of their race, prosecutors have said. This abuse began in a Washington home before continuing at the West Virginia residence where police found the children, according to prosecutors."
"The couple pleaded not guilty to child neglect charges last October. Kanawha County Circuit Judge Maryclaire Akers handed each a $200,000 bond, which they both posted in February." BBM

 

[spyblond]

I believe it has been reported that they moved to WV after an investigation may have began in Washington state.

*My opinion

Yes this article from New York Post confirms it.

Wealthy white couple allegedly kept their black adopted children as slaves, locked them in barn: report

Donald Ray Lantz, 63, and Jeanne Kay Whitefeather, 62, pleaded not guilty to more than a dozen new charges on Tuesday after several kids were found locked in a crumbling shed in ratty clothing, acc…

nypost.com

"Prosecutors also said they have evidence the couple moved from Washington after they learned they were under investigation for abuse and neglect."