CHARLESTON, W.Va. — A Kanawha County circuit judge has set a January 2025 trial date in a high-profile child neglect case involving a Sissonville couple who allegedly locked two of their four adopted children in a shed on their property and forced them to work.
Jeanne Kay Whitefeather and Donald Ray Lantz appeared back in court before Kanawha County Circuit Judge Maryclaire Akers again Thursday for a status update. Whitefeather and Lantz face multiple charges including child neglect creating a risk of substantial injury, human trafficking of a minor child, use of a minor child in forced labor, and human rights violations. The children found in a shed on the Sissonville-area property last year. Their trial was set to start Nov. 12.
During Thursday’s hearing it was brought to Aker’s attention that both sides need even more time working out the discovery process and details which she feels already should have been determined.
Kanawha County Assistant Prosecutor Chris Krivonyak asked for a new trial date and also filed a motion to allow the state’s expert to meet with the minor children ahead of the trial to determine whether they are psychologically competent to stand as witnesses.
Krivonyak said one of the children has been in a secure mental health facility since Whitefeather and Lantz were arrested from their Sissonville home last October and when the children were brought into state custody.
“When I began thinking about interacting with the kids I wanted to do a couple of things, I wanted to do it in a way that doesn’t cause more harm than they already suffered, and I thought that a doctor, a psychiatrist or a psychologist would be able to guide me in how to do that,” Krivonyak said to Akers.
Akers, however, said she wasn’t even sure if this request could be done. She asked him what specific case or rule he knows of that allows for an expert to meet with kids in this manner outside of the court.
“Mr. Krivonyak, the test under the law is whether or not a minor child is competent to testify, period, and that is solely within the trial court,” Akers told him.
Akers said the actual rule is when there’s a child to testify, there’s a test conducted on the child to determine if they can decipher the differences between truth and lie, and whether they require additional psychological evaluation.
She said while this is the actual rule, that’s not what he’s asking.
“You’re asking the court to allow you to have an expert meet with these children to tell you which one you should use at trial which is not allowable under the law,” Akers said.
Krivonyak said, however, that he just wanted some guidance on what the impact of a trial would have on the child. He said he’s already interviewed three of the four children and has no question whether or not they’re competent enough to stand trial, his concern only lies in the one child he hasn’t met with yet who’s been in a mental health facility.
Akers answered that by saying there’s other safeguards in place already which can properly handle that.
She said what he’s asking is too complicated a request for the court to agree to if he’s not just asking for a competency evaluation.
“It’s hard for the court to know what you want when the only thing that I’m allowed to do is to make a determination as to whether or not a child is competent, but you didn’t ask me for that, you asked me to have the expert of your choice meet with the child to determine whether or not you should use them as a victim, there’s nothing in the law that allows that,” she said.
Akers denied his request at this time.
She also continued to be displeased in the lack of preparation from all parties leading up to the trial.
“This case is not going to go on forever, it’s not going to go on for years, we’re not going to be able to kick the can down the road, this needs to be resolved one way or another,” said Akers.
A pre-trial date is now set for Jan. 7 at 9 a.m. The trial is set for Jan. 13 at 9 a.m.