Donald Ray Lantz and Jeanne Kay Whitefeather, a West Virginia couple, have been sentenced after reportedly being charged with forcing labor and trafficking their adopted children.
RELATED: White West Virginia Couple In Jail Amid Charges For Human Trafficking Of Black Adopted Children
More Details On The Sentencing Of Donald Ray Lantz And Jeanne Kay Whitefeather
According to TooFab, Lantz and Whitefeather were convicted on multiple charges of “child abuse, including forced labor, human trafficking, and neglect” on January 29. Per the outlet, Whitefeather has reportedly been sentenced to up to 215 years. Meanwhile, Lantz was reportedly sentenced to a maximum of 160 years. Furthermore, the outlet adds that both Lantz and Whitefeather have been ordered to pay $280,000 in restitution.
Per the outlet, Kanawha County Circuit Judge Maryclaire Akers reportedly told the couple the court would not show them mercy.
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“You brought these children to West Virginia, a place that I know as ‘Almost Heaven,’ and you put them in hell. This court will now put you in yours. And may God have mercy on your souls, because this court will not,” she reportedly stated.
white West Virginia couple, have been sentenced to decades in prison for severely abusing their adopted Black children. Jeanne Kay Whitefeather received up to 215 years (including an additional charge of civil rights violations), and Donald Lantz received 160 years. pic.twitter.com/EFtFCtYBOS
— kevin blue (@kevinblue345) March 20, 2025
More Details On The West Virginia Couple’s Alleged Trafficking & Mistreatment Of Their Adopted Children
As The Shade Room previously reported, Lantz and Whitefeather were adoptive parents of five Black children. In October of 2023, police reportedly discovered two of the children, locked inside a shed. At the time, the kids were 14 and 16. Furthermore, neighbors reportedly told police the kids were “forced to perform farm labor and were not permitted inside the residence.”
Ultimately, police discovered that the shed had no running water. Additionally, per PEOPLE, the children had been forced to sleep on the floor of the unit. Lastly, police reportedly discovered the children with “open sores,” “bare feet,” and unclean appearances.
Subsequently, a 16-page indictment was filed against the couple, per the outlet.
“It alleges human trafficking, human rights violations, the use of forced labor. 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,” Judge Akers reportedly stated at a 2024 hearing.
Per TooFab, the children had the opportunity to testify and read victim impact statements about the couple’s trial.
“I was taught to laugh at my siblings, and told they were bad; I was kept from them — watched a lot the stuff happen. Now, at my new home, I see that everything was not right with Jeanne and Donald,” the youngest child reportedly told the court.
Jeanne Whitefeather and her husband, Donald Lantz have officially been sentenced for the crimes committed upon their adopted Black children. She has been sentenced to 215 years in prison with parole eligibility after 40 years served and her husband has been sentenced to 160 pic.twitter.com/E6INjK5YwH
— Taurean Reign Reloaded (@TaureanReign) March 19, 2025
A Woman In Florida Has Been Sentenced In Connection To The Death Of Her Husband
As The Shade Room previously reported, Ellen Gillan, a woman in Florida. has been sentenced in connection to the death of her terminally ill husband. Gillan was sentenced to a year in prison and 12 years of probation after reportedly killing her husband in January 2023. At the time, it was reported that Gillan entered an AdventHealth location and committed the act while her husband was a patient on the 11th floor.
Subsequently, it was revealed that Gillan and her husband, Jerry, had reportedly planned the murder.
