KANAWHA COUNTY, W.Va. (WSAZ) – A couple found guilty of human trafficking and child neglect has received the maximum prison sentence.
Jeanne Whitefeather was sentenced to 215 years while Donald Lantz was sentenced to 160 years in prison.
Whitefeather will be eligible for parole in 40 years. Lantz will be eligible for parole in 30 years.
The couple has been ordered to pay $280,000 in restitution apiece to the victims.
The case began after children were found in locked in a closed off area of a barn in Sissonville.
The children were discovered in October 2023 by Kanawha County Sheriff’s deputies, resulting in the arrests of both Lantz and Whitefeather.
Whitefeather was found guilty of all 19 counts she faced, including forced labor, civil rights violations, abuse and gross neglect.
Lantz was found guilty of 16 counts, including human trafficking, neglect and forced labor. He was found not guilty of four counts of civil rights violations.
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