Five black children who were forced to endure horrific abuse and were treated like slaves by their white adoptive parents have received a massive payout.
asserted
who → force → payout
The children who were once adopted by Jeanne Kay Whitefeather, 63, and Donald Lantz, 64, won a historic $4.4 million settlement from the state of West Virginia over Child Protective Services' handling of repeated reports about their welfare.
asserted
who → adopt → welfare
The money will now be split between the children in a trust to be used for the victims to recover, as several face high-level needs due to the trauma they continue to face from the abuse they endured, West Virginia Watch reports.
asserted
Watch → split → abuse
'It means that these kids will have an opportunity to be children,' said attorney Dante' diTrapano, who represented the children in the case.
asserted
who → mean → case
They were robbed of their innocence and robbed of their youth by the monsters that were their former parents.'
asserted
that → rob → monsters
The payout is the maximum each child could receive under the state's limitations within the Board of Risk Management, which paid out the settlement amount.
uncertain
which → receive → amount
It comes more than one year after Whitefeather and Lantz were sentenced to serve decades behind bars for their treatment of the children.
asserted
Whitefeather → come → children
Whitefeather is now serving 215 years in prison, with at least 40 years behind bars before she is eligible for parole.
asserted
she → serve → parole
Lantz, meanwhile, was sentenced to 160 years in prison but must spend at least 30 behind bars before parole eligibility.
asserted
Lantz → sentence → eligibility
They were both also ordered to pay $280,000 in restitution to their five children.
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They → order → children
Five black children who were once adopted by Jeanne Kay Whitefeather and Donald Lantz won a historic $4.4 million settlement from the state of West Virginia
The children were found by authorities in October 2023 locked in a shed at the couple's Sissonville home with no lights, food or running water, and a camera recording them.
asserted
children → adopt → them
Whitefeather had claimed that the children were not being held against their will and that the shed was used as a 'teenage clubhouse' but detectives found that the kids were locked in from the outside.
asserted
kids → claim → outside
After authorities found the three older children locked in the shed, they discovered a nine-year-old girl locked inside the main house.
asserted
they → find → house
The children had poor body odor and were found wearing dirty clothes with sores on their feet.
asserted
children → have → feet
It was later revealed that neighbors had reported the disturbing scenes they saw at the house to Child Protective Services but never heard back about their referrals.
asserted
they → reveal → referrals
In court, neighbor Joyce Bailey testified how she saw Lantz make the children carry heavy fencing, haul buckets of water, and carry propane tanks around the yard.
asserted
children → testify → yard
She went on to recall how the children were worked to the bone, and at one point the oldest boy could 'barely walk.'
uncertain
boy → go → point
Racist text messages were also submitted during the trial and the oldest child, who is now 18, testified that her adoptive parents made her dig with her hands, only fed her peanut butter sandwiches, and forced her and her siblings to use a bucket to go to the bathroom.
asserted
her → submit → bathroom
She also testified that her parents wouldn't eat off the same plates as the children and referred to her as 'dirty.'
The children were found by authorities in October 2023 locked in a shed at the couple's Sissonville home with no lights, food, or running water, and a camera recording them
Prosecutors argued in court that the parents treated their five black children like 'slaves' forcing them into horrific labor and subjecting them to racist remarks
Despite these claims, Child Protective Services failed to provide any documentation showing its agents made contact with the children, diTrapano claimed in his suit against the state agency.
uncertain
diTrapano → testify → agency
The agency instead simply left a card at the family's door, according to testimony at the trial.
uncertain
agency → leave → trial
Then, when Child Protective Services did conduct an interview of the children, they were within earshot of Lantz and Whitefeather.
asserted
they → conduct → Lantz
'There were a ton of calls that came in from neighbors, and I think only one visit out there,' diTrapano said.
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diTrapano → be → neighbors
The lawyer now maintains that the 'whole system is broken.'
'There's all kinds of things that need to be changed,' he said.
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he → maintain → things
'The quality of the employees that they're having to go out here and look after the welfare of these children, some of the manner in which they do these interviews and document things, they have to take these calls seriously.
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they → have → calls
'
But Lars Dalseide, a spokesman for West Virginia Governor Patrick Morrisey, told West Virginia Watch that the employee who conducted the interview of the children was terminated by the previous administration.
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who → tell → administration
'We cannot speak to what additional policy or operational changes the previous administration may have made specifically in response to this case,' he noted.
uncertain
he → speak → case
'Since taking office, however, the Morrisey administration has made substantial changes to strengthen West Virginia's child welfare system,' Dalseide said, citing changes like restructuring leadership with clearer expectations and stronger training.
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Dalseide → take → expectations
The West Virginia couple was sentenced last year to serve decades behind bars
The Morrisey administration is now also using the 'SAFE Model' to assess child welfare cases with the goal of providing a more consistent approach to its decisions.
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administration → sentence → decisions
'The safety and well-being of West Virginia's children remain our highest priorities,' the spokesman said.
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spokesman → remain → children
'DoHS will continue evaluating its policies, oversight and operations and make changes where needed to better protect children and support families.
asserted
DoHS → continue → families
The children who were once adopted by Whitefeather and Lantz have since been placed with new adoptive families.
asserted
who → adopt → families
Two of the new adoptive mothers spoke in court about the children's lives now ahead of the settlement agreement.
asserted
Two → speak → agreement
'The mother described going to the beach, going to the amusement parks and going to the museum,' diTrapano recounted to WCHS-TV.
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diTrapano → describe → TV
'It was a fantastic experience as a lawyer to see that these kids now have something to be happy about.'
asserted
kids → see → something
The attorney, diTrapano, and Salango Law are now planning to bring another suit against the Washington Human Services Department because the agency approved Whitefeather and Lantz transferring the children from Washington to West Virginia despite prior reports of child abuse against the couple.
asserted
Whitefeather → plan → couple
There is no monetary damage cap in Washington on what the children could receive in that payout if the attorneys are successful in their challenge.
uncertain
attorneys → be → challenge
Meanwhile, state lawmaker Del. Hollis Lewis said he will introduce legislation, called the Child Captivity Prevention Act, that would require families moving to West Virginia who intend to homeschool their children to notify the Department of Human Services.
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who → say → Services
'This is an attack on abusers because we don't want our relaxed homeschool and school choice policies to be a conduit for abusers,' he told West Virginia Watch.
asserted
he → want → Watch
'I do not believe they landed on West Virginia because of our beauty or our economy,' Lewis added of Whitefeather and Lantz.
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Lewis → believe → Whitefeather
'I believe they came specifically because they knew they could operate in a manner and have little oversight.
uncertain
they → believe → oversight
…and 4 more, not listed.
The Aporia
