Five Black children who suffered severe abuse and were treated as slaves by their white adoptive parents have secured a multimillion-dollar settlement.

The siblings, adopted by Jeanne Kay Whitefeather, 63, and Donald Lantz, 64, will share $4.4 million from the state of West Virginia. The settlement stems from allegations that Child Protective Services failed to act after receiving repeated reports about the children’s safety and welfare.

The funds will be placed in a trust for the children, several of whom require extensive support as they continue to cope with the lasting effects of the abuse, West Virginia Watch reports.

“It means that these kids will have an opportunity to be children,” said attorney Dante’ diTrapano, who represented the siblings.

“They were robbed of their innocence and robbed of their youth by the monsters that were their former parents.”

The settlement represents the maximum amount each child could receive under West Virginia’s liability limits. Payment was made through the state Board of Risk Management.

The agreement was reached more than a year after Whitefeather and Lantz were sentenced to decades in prison for the abuse and mistreatment of the children.

Whitefeather is serving a 215-year sentence and must remain incarcerated for at least 40 years before becoming eligible for parole.

Lantz received a 160-year sentence and must serve at least 30 years before he can seek parole. Both were also ordered to pay $280,000 in restitution to the five children.

Authorities found the children in October 2023 inside a shed at the couple’s home in Sissonville. The structure had no lighting, food or running water, and a camera had been set up to record them.

Whitefeather insisted the children were not being held captive and described the shed as a “teenage clubhouse.” Detectives, however, determined that the door was locked from the outside.

After locating the three older children in the shed, investigators found a nine-year-old girl confined inside the main house.

The children had a strong body odor, wore dirty clothing and had sores on their feet when they were discovered.

The case later revealed that neighbors had contacted Child Protective Services about troubling conditions at the property but received no follow-up on their reports.

During the criminal trial, neighbor Joyce Bailey testified that she saw Lantz ordering the children to move heavy fencing, haul buckets of water and carry propane tanks around the yard.

Bailey said the children were pushed to the point of exhaustion. At one stage, she recalled, the oldest boy could “barely walk.”

The trial also included racist text messages. The oldest child, now 18, testified that her adoptive parents forced her to dig with her bare hands, fed her and her siblings only peanut butter sandwiches, and made them use a bucket as a toilet.

She further told the court that Whitefeather and Lantz refused to eat from the same plates as the children and called her “dirty.”

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.

The agency instead simply left a card at the family’s door, according to testimony at the trial.

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Then, when Child Protective Services did conduct an interview of the children, they were within earshot of Lantz and Whitefeather.

‘There were a ton of calls that came in from neighbors, and I think only one visit out there,’ diTrapano said. ‘There should have been many more.’

The lawyer now maintains that the ‘whole system is broken.’

‘There’s all kinds of things that need to be changed,’ he said. ‘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.’  

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.

‘We cannot speak to what additional policy or operational changes the previous administration may have made specifically in response to this case,’ he noted.

‘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.

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.

‘The safety and well-being of West Virginia’s children remain our highest priorities,’ the spokesman said. ‘DoHS will continue evaluating its policies, oversight and operations and make changes where needed to better protect children and support families.’

The children who were once adopted by Whitefeather and Lantz have since been placed with new adoptive families.

Two of the new adoptive mothers spoke in court about the children’s lives now ahead of the settlement agreement.

‘The mother described going to the beach, going to the amusement parks and going to the museum,’ diTrapano recounted to WCHS-TV. 

‘It was a fantastic experience as a lawyer to see that these kids now have something to be happy about.’ 

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.

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.

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.

‘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.

‘I do not believe they landed on West Virginia because of our beauty or our economy,’ Lewis added of Whitefeather and Lantz. ‘I believe they came specifically because they knew they could operate in a manner and have little oversight.’

‘We’re for parents having options about how they wish to educate their children, but we are also for sensible, common sense guidelines and provisions to ensure that you know those educational choices don’t lead to abuse.’ 

Lewis had previously introduced the measure earlier this year, but it didn’t move forward before lawmakers adjourned in March.

As Lewis now vows to continue to fight for the measure’s passage, he said Sissonville residents should be thanked for their continued calls to Child Protective Services and police in the historic child abuse case.

‘The community was the one that actually blew the whistle on this, and [if] not for the community’s effort… those kids could possibly still be enslaved now and getting abused now, or even worse,’ he suggested. 

Federal authorities said Sunday that a California real estate agent accused of conducting surveillance on behalf of Beijing was arrested at Los Angeles International Airport while attempting to travel to China.

Wanying Zhang, 34, of Irvine, who also goes by “Heather,” allegedly worked with an accomplice to photograph and videotape a family outside its home in the Seattle area, according to a criminal complaint obtained by News Media.

“We just arrested a Chinese foreign agent at LAX attempting to depart for China,” First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli wrote on X.

Essayli said FBI agents in Los Angeles arrested Zhang on a federal charge alleging that she acted as an unregistered agent of the People’s Republic of China.

According to authorities, Zhang traveled to Seattle in 2025 under the direction of Chinese officials, then provided them with photographs, video footage and vehicle license plate details.

“She coordinated the trip with an associate and used tradecraft to avoid detection,” Essayli wrote. “She never notified the Attorney General she was acting for a foreign government, a federal offense.”

Appearing Sunday on “The Big Weekend Show,” Essayli said Zhang is a naturalized U.S. citizen and confirmed that the alleged surveillance focused on a relative of Taiwan’s president.

“She was conducting surveillance on behalf of the Chinese government. She was acting as a foreign agent,” Essayli said. “And she was spying on a relative of the president of Taiwan here in the U.S.”

Essayli said investigators detained Zhang as she prepared to board a flight bound for Shanghai.

FBI Director Kash Patel issued a separate warning to foreign adversaries after the arrest.

“Foreign adversaries take note: America is no longer a safe place to run your espionage operations,” Patel said.

“Allegedly surveil a foreign leader’s family on U.S. soil for the PRC — and try to catch a flight back to Shanghai? Not happening.”

“This FBI is hunting threats to our national security wherever they hide — and bringing them to justice,” he added.

The alleged target was Ting-Yu Lai, the U.S.-based son of Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te, CBS News reported, citing law enforcement sources. Zhang’s criminal complaint does not identify him by name.

“Saw him. Young male. It’s that young one,” Zhang allegedly wrote to a Chinese government contact while outside the residence.

“I am videorecording,” she allegedly added before sending two license plate numbers.

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Zhang and her alleged associate flew from Las Vegas to Seattle on Sept. 1, 2025, rented a black Nissan Rogue and positioned themselves near the family’s home, authorities said.

When the target arrived, a neighbor’s security camera allegedly recorded the pair suddenly sitting upright and extending what appeared to be phones toward the family to take photographs or video, according to an affidavit. Several relatives, including children, arrived soon afterward.

“While individual 1 took pictures, Zhang reclined her seat as if to avoid being seen,” FBI Special Agent Kevin Holt wrote.

Days later, Zhang allegedly told her associate to transfer the surveillance photos through AirDrop.

“Seattle pictures, don’t send via WeChat or text. Must be sent over the air. I have to send it back. He wants me to send it back today,” she said in an audio message described in the affidavit.

Holt said he believed the instruction was intended to help avoid detection. The associate later told Zhang he had deleted the photos and cleared them from his deleted folder, which Holt described as an apparent attempt to destroy evidence.

Investigators believe Zhang received the surveillance assignment during a June 2025 meeting with a Chinese government contact in Changsha, China.

“I can take care of this thing,” she allegedly told the contact.

Holt warned that information about a senior Taiwanese official’s relatives, including their homes and cars, could give Beijing leverage over Taiwan’s president during a potential conflict.

“Engaging in surveillance of a close relative of a high-ranking member of Taiwan’s government is not normal diplomatic behavior, especially inside of the United States,” he wrote.

Essayli warned on “The Big Weekend Show” that the threat extends beyond California.

“China’s very good at using people who are already here,” he said. “I don’t think it’s unique to California. It is happening nationwide.”

Essayli said Zhang is scheduled to appear Monday in federal court in Los Angeles and noted that defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty.

The arrest comes months after former Arcadia Mayor Eileen Wang was charged in a separate case with acting as an agent of China involving paid efforts to spread pro-Beijing propaganda in the United States.

News Media reached out to the FBI and the Justice Department for comment and additional information.

Kate Donohoe has long paid close attention to her diet, as well as to how much alcohol she drinks.

Earlier in adulthood, the 44-year-old personal trainer lost 140 lbs after making major changes to her eating habits and committing to regular exercise.

Yet as recently as last Christmas, Kate says her appetite and weight still tended to fluctuate depending on the season.

After the holidays, she would often find her healthy routine derailed by the abundance of sugary chocolate, indulgent meals and alcohol consumed during the festive period.

‘I would always gain weight after Christmas,’ she says. ‘My body would get used to all that extra sugar, carbohydrates and alcohol, and keep wanting more.’

Kate even began considering prescription weight-loss injections, including Mounjaro and Wegovy.

But a discussion with a friend about appetite-suppressing medication prompted her to reconsider.

The friend recommended that Kate try glucomannan, a natural supplement that is claimed to produce some effects similar to those associated with the newer weight-loss drugs.

A growing range of natural slimming products is now available, but researchers say glucomannan has some of the strongest supporting evidence. European health regulators have also officially recognized it as a weight-loss aid.

Experts also point to emerging evidence that glucomannan may help reduce cholesterol and blood sugar levels, both of which are associated with potentially life-threatening heart conditions.

Although Kate initially doubted whether the supplement would work, she decided to try it in January.

‘I had no expectations,’ she says. ‘But I figured it couldn’t hurt.’

She ordered a month’s supply from Amazon for approximately $14, equivalent to around 60 cents per pill.

Following the instructions, Kate took three or four pills each day, depending on her hunger levels, before lunch and dinner.

She says the change was noticeable almost immediately.

‘Within two days I had no cravings,’ she says. ‘There was nothing I hankered for, I could eat a balanced diet and I wasn’t obsessed or thinking about food.’

Kate, who operates the UK-based business Boom Weight Loss and Fitness, also says she found herself less inclined to drink as much alcohol.

After just one month, she says her waist measurement had fallen by more than an inch, returning her to the weight she had been before Christmas.

‘It just made it really easy to get back on track with a healthy routine,’ says Kate.

‘It just made it really easy to get back on track with a healthy routine,’ says Kate.

‘Now, it’s become my crutch – I keep a massive tub of them in the cupboard to take whenever I find it hard to keep on track with my meal plan.’

So, what is glucomannan? And how does it help patients lose weight?

Weight-loss drugs, like Mounjaro and Wegovy, have been revolutionary to millions, helping them lose, according to studies, up to a fifth of their body weight in less than a year.

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However, the jabs do not work for everyone. Research also shows that around two-thirds of patients who come off the costly drugs put the majority of the weight back on. 

For these reasons, a growing number of patients are turning to natural weight-loss supplements, like glucomannan.

The supplement is made from powdered konjac, a root vegetable found in Asia.

The powder contains almost no calories, but is high in fiber – a crucial nutrient that is shown in studies to reduce food cravings.

The body, says John Lukey, a registered nutritionist from King’s College London, struggles to break down fiber, meaning it stays in the stomach for longer, slowing down digestion and holding off hunger pangs.

But crucially, Mr Lukey adds, when fiber combines with water, it forms a gel that swells up – often to as much as 50 times its size – taking up space in the stomach.

‘It’s this absorption that means glucomannan helps with weight-loss,’ says Mr Lukey.

‘It stretches the gut, which sends signals to the brain to say it is full, meaning you eat less.

‘There’s now quite a lot of data that shows it helps with weight management.’

One Norwegian study, published in 2005, found that patients who took glucomannan supplements alongside a reduced-calorie diet lost more weight than those who followed the diet and took a placebo pill.

Over five weeks, those using the supplement lost, on average, around 8 lbs, while those on the placebo lost around 5.5 lbs

‘We also know that glucomannan helps with cholesterol,’ says Mr Lukey, who is also the in-house nutritionist at health firm Nutravita. ‘This is something we see in all fiber supplements.’

Cholesterol is a waxy plaque that builds up in the blood and can trigger deadly heart attacks or strokes.

However, experts also warn that glucomannan can lead to mild but uncomfortable side effects like bloating, flatulence, diarrhea and stomach pain.

These symptoms tend to occur when patients begin taking the supplement, and ease over time.

Experts also add that glucomannan is not a substitute for a healthy diet and exercise.

In particular, they advise that patients eat plenty of naturally rich fiber foods – like fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, legumes and whole grains – as well as plenty of protein, found in meat, dairy, fish, pulses and some vegetables.

‘A high-protein, high-fiber diet is the best way forwards for those looking to lose weight,’ says Mr Lukey.

Kate Donohoe says she would recommend glucomannan to anyone looking to lose weight.

Kate stopped taking the tablets after January because she was satisfied with her weight loss. However, following Easter, when she once again indulged in sugar and alcohol, she briefly went back on them again.

‘I just wanted to make that week after Easter easier for myself,’ she says.

‘Alongside diet and exercise, glucomannan could make weight-loss easier for anyone trying to give it a go. That’s why it would be my first port of call before trying weight-loss jabs.’

A chemical emergency at an Oregon high school that left a student critically ill has now become a domestic terrorism and attempted murder case involving the teenager school employees tried to rescue.

The 15-year-old student at Benson Polytechnic High School is facing 19 criminal charges after authorities said he brought chemicals from home and combined them inside the Portland campus on Sept. 8, producing toxic gases that put students and staff at risk.

“Safety in our schools is not something that can be negotiated,” Multnomah County District Attorney Nathan Vasquez said at a news conference Oct. 2.

“That violence or the threat of violence in a school… it doesn’t just stay in that building. It follows families home. It sits at the dinner table with them.”

Portland Police Bureau Public Information Manager Mike Benner said investigators found “concerning behaviors and statements” predating the incident, including the teenager’s reported interest in hazardous chemicals, explosives and violence.

Because he is a minor, the teenager has not been publicly identified. He faces 10 counts of attempted aggravated murder, along with one count each of attempted first-degree murder, attempted second-degree murder, first-degree domestic terrorism and second-degree domestic terrorism.

The remaining allegations include unlawfully manufacturing and possessing a destructive device, possessing a weapon in a public building, unlawful use of a weapon and recklessly endangering another person.

His attorneys have denied the allegations and said he is undergoing treatment at an inpatient mental health facility, according to The New York Times.

Vasquez said prosecutors intend to seek a transfer of the case from juvenile court to adult court, citing the need to protect students and school employees.

“And I want to be clear, they’re teenagers, but these are children, and they deserve a safe environment,” he said.

The district attorney also condemned what he described as a wider weakness in Oregon’s juvenile justice system, which ends supervision when a person turns 25—even if officials believe that individual remains a threat to the public.

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“I think that that is wrong,” Vasquez said, arguing that the law does not adequately address the potential danger posed by someone convicted of multiple killings or domestic terrorism.

“I’m looking at conduct and how dangerous that is and what I consider to be safe for the community going forward,” he said.

The incident began shortly before 8:30 a.m., when large numbers of students and staff were in the vicinity of the teenager, Assistant Chief of Investigations Franz Schoening said.

Teachers and administrators quickly moved students away while the school nurse treated the teenager before emergency crews arrived. He was transported to a hospital in critical condition but survived.

“Those first few moments were critical in preventing further harm and lives being lost,” Schoening said.

More than 100 students and staff members were evaluated after leaving the building, and at least seven people needed medical treatment, he said.

Sgt. Jim DeFrain, who oversees the investigation and the Metropolitan Explosive Disposal Unit, said preliminary testing detected hydrogen sulfide, a toxic gas.

An Oregon National Guard team reached the same conclusion. Investigators sent samples to an FBI laboratory for additional analysis, but the results were still pending when officials held the briefing, DeFrain said.

The FBI was also analyzing electronic devices and other equipment seized during searches.

Vasquez said the investigation remained open and that anyone else found to have criminal involvement could face charges.

“If we determine or find any links, if there are people that can be charged, this office will charge them,” he said.

New York Attorney General Letitia James is being urged to recuse herself from the investigation into an alleged sexual assault at Cornell University after a defense attorney questioned whether she had already embraced the accuser’s account before taking charge of the case.

Andrew Miltenberg, who represents one of seven former fraternity members named in a civil lawsuit, said James’ earlier public comments in support of the woman raised “an avoidable question about the appearance of impartiality.”

“The concern is whether the public can have confidence that the investigation begins without any predetermined view of the facts,” Miltenberg said in a statement to Fox News.

Gov. Kathy Hochul appointed the attorney general’s office as special prosecutor Thursday, replacing Tompkins County District Attorney Matthew Van Houten in the inquiry into an alleged October 2024 sexual assault at Cornell’s Chi Phi fraternity house.

The woman, identified as Jane Doe in court filings, claims that seven former fraternity members drugged and sexually assaulted her. The men have denied wrongdoing. Some say the sexual activity was consensual, while others deny taking part. No criminal charges have been filed against any of the seven men.

Miltenberg’s challenge focuses on remarks James made before her office was selected to oversee the criminal investigation. In a public statement, she called what the woman had “been forced to endure” “horrific and unacceptable” and told her, along with “all survivors,” that “we stand with you.”

Asked at Friday’s news conference whether the Facebook post raised questions about her objectivity, James replied, “I will not comment on a Facebook post.”

Donna Rotunno, a criminal defense attorney and Fox News contributor, also questioned James’ involvement during an appearance on Fox News’ “The Big Weekend Show.”

“But it should be fair. It should be impartial. And it should not be from someone who’s already made a public statement on Facebook about it,” Rotunno said while discussing the reopened investigation.

James has said the investigation will be conducted according to “the facts and the law.”

Miltenberg said his objections were not politically motivated and did not minimize the seriousness of the sexual assault allegations.

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“There is nothing improper about expressing compassion for someone who reports a sexual assault,” Miltenberg said. “But there is an important difference between supporting a person who makes an allegation and appearing to accept the factual premise of that allegation before conducting an investigation.”

He called on James to recuse herself personally while permitting senior prosecutors in her office who have not commented publicly on the substance of the allegations to lead the investigation.

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“That would not weaken the investigation. It would strengthen it,” Miltenberg said.

He said the independence and public-confidence concerns that led to the appointment of a special prosecutor should also apply to the official overseeing the replacement investigation.

“I am not suggesting that Attorney General James does not believe she can be fair,” he said.

The case drew renewed scrutiny after Doe filed a civil lawsuit Sept. 16, nearly two years after the alleged assault. The complaint also names Cornell, fraternity entities, Doe’s sorority and a local bar, among others, alleging failures to protect her.

Van Houten initially declined to pursue criminal charges, saying the signed statement his office received from Cornell University Police did not establish a crime under New York law. He said prosecutors assumed Doe’s account was true and that her credibility was “never in question.”

He later reopened the investigation after the lawsuit surfaced.

Questions about the original investigation intensified when CBS News presented Van Houten with a fuller transcript of Doe’s police interviews that he said his office had never received.

“That wasn’t information that I had,” Van Houten said, adding that its existence “changes the landscape for me.”

Rotunno also questioned why prosecutors had not sought the complete investigative record before deciding against charges.

“The real question is, why didn’t the DA ask for every piece of information that the campus police gathered?” she said on “The Big Weekend Show.”

She warned against allowing public reaction to drive the case.

“We are watching the court of public opinion take over here when we don’t know the facts,” Rotunno said.

Cornell has separately agreed to an independent review of its handling of the allegations. University President Michael Kotlikoff said its disciplinary process resulted in two expulsions and two suspensions of at least two semesters. One student graduated before discipline could be imposed, and two were found not responsible for sexual misconduct.

Those proceedings are separate from the criminal investigation.

Cornell previously told Fox News it “fully support[s] the appointment of a special prosecutor” and is committed to “an independent external review of all aspects of how Cornell has handled this case.”

Miltenberg said any decision about criminal charges should come from prosecutors whose impartiality the public can trust.

“The simplest way to remove that question is for her personally to recuse herself and allow an uncommitted prosecutor within her office to lead the investigation,” he said.