How Could You? Hall of Shame-Donald Lantz and Jeanne Whitefeather UPDATED

This will be an archive of heinous actions by those involved in child welfare, foster care and adoption. We forewarn you that these are deeply disturbing stories that may involve sex abuse, murder, kidnapping and other horrendous actions.From Sissonville, West Virginia, adoptive parents, “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 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.”

“Deputies launched an investigation after someone called 911 saying the children were locked in the barn for days and were not allowed in the home, ABC Charleston, West Virginia, affiliate WCHS-TV reported, citing a criminal complaint.

When deputies arrived at the home in the 200 block of Cheyenne Lane in Sissonville, they found no parents.

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.

“It’s a pretty bad case,” Kanawha County Sheriff’s Office Sgt. Josh Lester said, the station reported. “You know, any type of situation like this is not really comparable to this horrific condition. It’s just not how you want or how you would expect children to be raised or taken care of.”

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.

No caretakers or parents were found at the home then, but the adoptive parents arrived later and were arrested, authorities said.

Child Protective Services took the kids into their care.

The parents were held in jail on a $200,000 cash bond with an Oct. 12 preliminary hearing date set, online jail records show. It was unclear whether they have attorneys.”

‘It’s a pretty bad case’: Adoptive parents arrested after children found locked in barn in dirty clothes and reeking of body odor
[Law and Crime 10/3/23 by JASON KANDEL]

REFORM Puzzle Piece

Update:“Donald Lantz and Jeanne Whitefeather” “were indicted.”

“Lantz and Whitefeather were both released on a $200,000 cash-only bond in February 2024, according to the Kanawha County Circuit Clerk’s Office. The orders filed in the circuit clerk’s office state Lantz and Whitefeather are not to have any contact with the victims.”
Man, woman indicted, accused of locking adopted children in Sissonville barn