Authorities arrested Jeanne Whitefeather, 62, and Donald Lantz, 63, after receiving a call from someone concerned about their children’s welfare. A judge said the couple were using their Black adopted children as slaves. According to The Associated Press, the West Virginia couple is charged with 16 counts each, including civil rights violations, human trafficking, child neglect, and forced labor.
Judge Condemns Racially Motivated Human Rights Violations as Deputies Discover Children Locked in Barn
West Virginia MetroNews reports that Kanawha County Circuit Judge Maryclaire Akers spoke during the hearing on June 11, 2024. She stated, “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.”
At 5:46 p.m. on Oct. 2, 2023, Kanawha County sheriff’s deputies responded to a call at Whitefeather and Lantz’s home. They found two children locked inside a barn.
“The children had no means to exit the barn on their own, no running water, no bathroom facilities, and were obviously deprived of adequate hygienic care and food,” the sheriff’s department said in a statement.
Deputies Rescue Children Locked in Shed: ‘Repulsive’ Conditions Described by Responding Officer
After knocking on the shed’s door, deputies forced their way in when the 16-year-old girl indicated she was unable to open it. Deputy H.K. Burdette said in a criminal complaint that the teenage girl said the defendants had brought food to her and her 14-year-old brother early that morning and that they had been inside for about 12 hours with no contact from the couple. The girl also said she and her brother were not allowed inside the house and were “locked in the shed for long periods of time daily.”
“I was repulsed, for the lack of a better term,” said Deputy Burdette, who responded to the barn in 2023 and testified during a preliminary hearing, per WSAZ. “As soon as the door was open, the heat from inside hit us. The smell made my eyes water. It was terrible without running water, circulating air, or beds.”
Children Found in Distress as Judge Increases Bail for Accused West Virginia Couple
No adults were present at the home. Deputies found a 9-year-old girl alone, crying, in a loft about 15 feet (4.6 meters) high. There were no safeguards to prevent her from falling. When Lantz returned, he had an 11-year-old fourth child with him. Later, deputies were led to the couple’s 6-year-old adopted Black daughter, who had been with acquaintances from the couple’s church.
Judge Akers increased each defendant’s bonds from $400,000 to $500,000 each, cash only.
Ed Bullman, Lantz’s attorney, said at the June 11, 2024, hearing that the charges were full of “square pegs and very round holes,” per The Associated Press.
All of the Black adopted children kept as slaves are currently in the custody of Child Protective Services. The court has scheduled the couple’s trial for Sept. 9, 2024. They remain held at the South Central Regional Jail.
Kamala Harris has been talking about a 2 state solution. How would you like to divide your city & share it with whoever burned it down? A group of mainly Europeans invaded Palestine, took most of the land, burned roughly 450 villages and outright murdered people, took their homes. Locked up most of the remaining Palestinians for decades–the ones who didn’t escape, and the ones who did escape still live in refugee camps. and now the invaders have been relentless in conducting their own holocaust. So they should be handed half of Palestine? They should be arrested or told to return to whatever country they came from.
The things Kamala Harris said about Biden are delusional. He will only be remembered as ‘Genicide Joe’s.
What is this, why would you allow for such nonsense to be shown and Joe Biden is one of the best President ever and maybe you should write about Tump Project 25 so, the good folks that read your article can learn what kind of dictation world he’s trying to provide