A West Virginia couple who forced their five adopted children to work under brutal conditions has been sentenced to the maximum prison terms for forced labor, human trafficking, and child abuse. Jeanne Whitefeather, 62, and Donald Lantz, 63, were convicted in January. They now face 215 years and 160 years behind bars, respectively.
Judge Maryclaire Akers made it clear that their punishment would match the severity of their crimes. “You brought them to West Virginia, a place I know as almost heaven, and you put them in hell,” she told them. “This court will now put you in yours.”
A household built on cruelty
The couple, both white, adopted five Black siblings and subjected them to years of exploitation and abuse. The children were locked in a shed, forced to sleep on the floor, given minimal food, and required to use a bucket as a toilet while security cameras monitored their every move. They were assigned physically exhausting chores and forced to perform difficult labor.
Prosecutors had argued that the couple specifically chose Black children to adopt, seeing them as more easily exploitable.
During their trial, the eldest daughter testified that she and her siblings were treated like servants rather than children. They had to stand for hours to avoid falling asleep and were physically punished for disobedience. Some of the children were forced to dig with their bare hands and perform backbreaking labor with no regard for their well-being.
The Independent reports,
The oldest girl and boy shared a room, were forced to sleep on the floor, and used the same bucket for the bathroom while the other held up a sheet for privacy from the home’s security cameras, according to testimony.
Excuses and no accountability
Despite the overwhelming evidence, Whitefeather and Lantz denied responsibility for their actions. Whitefeather claimed she had never intended to harm the children, while Lantz dismissed the forced labor as routine farm chores. Their defense tried to shift blame onto the state’s child welfare system, arguing they were simply overwhelmed caregivers.
The prosecution, however, revealed that the couple never sought help for their children’s trauma despite living minutes away from a mental health clinic. Instead, they isolated the children, inflicted punishment, and exploited them.
The eldest daughter, who has since filed a civil lawsuit against her adoptive parents, rejected their apologies. In a powerful statement, she told the court,
I don’t understand at all how you were able to treat any person the way you treated me and my siblings and then preach the name of God right after that.
The fight to protect vulnerable children
This case underscores the urgent need for stronger protections for vulnerable children, particularly those in foster care and adoption systems.
At least in this case, justice has been served.
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