West Virginia Couple to Face Trial for Allegedly Using Adopted Black Children as ‘Slaves’

A West Virginia couple will remain behind bars as they await trial for allegedly using their adopted black children as “slaves,” according to a judge. Donald Ray Lantz, 63, and Jeanne Kay Whitefeather, 62, are being held on a combined $1 million on human trafficking and other charges after a judge last week increased their bond. The husband and wife, who are both white, pleaded not guilty to charges of human trafficking of a minor child, use of a minor child in forced labor, child neglect creating substantial risk of serious bodily injury or death, and false swearing. A neighbor first alerted law enforcement in October 2023 about concerns over the welfare of the couple’s adopted children. Authorities found a teenage boy and girl locked in a shed in their Sissonville home near Charleston. The outhouse did not have any running water or bathrooms, according to the criminal complaint, and the children did not have adequate food....