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West Virginia Parents Charged After Adopted Children Found Locked in Barn

Child Protective Services and Kanawha County Sheriff’s Office Criminal Investigative Section are investigating the matter.

Two parents in West Virginia were charged with felony gross child neglect after their adoptive children were discovered unattended and locked in a barn on Tuesday, the Kanawha County Sheriff’s Office announced in a press release. “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 release said. “At the main residence, deputies located another small child locked inside alone.” The adoptive parents, Donald Lantz and Jeanne Whitefeather, were later arrested after arriving at the barn following the police’s discovery. Child Protective Services and Kanawha County Sheriff’s Office Criminal Investigative Section are jointly investigating the matter.