A Buena Vista man was sentenced on Feb. 17 to 20 years in prison after pleading guilty to two counts of child abuse and neglect causing serious injury. He will serve a total of four years.
Treveion St. Clair-Helm, 22, of Buena Vista was arrested on April 19, 2025, after deputies with the Rockbridge County Sheriff’s Office responded to a call for service in the Vesuvius area alleging abuse of two infants by their father, according to a press release put out by the sheriff’s office last Tuesday.
The investigation into the incident uncovered video evidence showing the father, St. Clair-Helm, carrying one of the infants by the neck “with the child’s full body weight supported by the head and neck,” and also showed the father striking the infant on the back “five or six times” with enough force to “produce a clearly audible sound.”
Both infants were evaluated and treated at Carilion Rockbridge Community Hospital, then transferred to Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital for forensic examinations. During a summary of the evidence that would have been presented at trial, the commonwealth’s attorney shared the findings of the forensic examination, listing the injuries that were reported.
One infant was found to have bruising on their ears, face, torso, abdomen, back and legs, as well as breaks to both their upper and lower lips indicating blunt force trauma to the mouth. The infant also had injuries that were “indicative of strangulation,” including petechiae, or burst blood vessels, on the head and face that caused red dots on the skin and hemorrhaging in the right eye.
The second infant was found to have had a “previously torn and healed” upper Fernulum (a thin band of tissue that connects the upper lip to the gums above the upper teeth), which is consistent with blunt force trauma, as well as a “healing, non-displaced distal fracture” of their right ulna (the thinner bone in the forearm). Additionally, an expert would have testified that all of the injuries “would have been inflicted upon them” as neither infant was old enough for movement, including rolling over, which could have caused self-inflicted injury.
Both infants were removed from the home by the Rockbridge Area Department of Social Services and placed into foster care following St. Clair-Helm’s arrest. They remain with their foster family and are expected to make a full recovery without any long-term physical injuries.
St. Clair-Helm was originally charged with two counts of child abuse showing a reckless disregard for human life, which is a class six felony. The charges were later amended to child abuse causing serious injury, a class four felony, which carry a maximum sentence of 10 years. He was sentenced to 10 years for each charge with eight years of each sentence suspended. The sentences will run consecutively, meaning he will serve four years. Upon his release, he will be subject to supervised probation for five years.
The sheriff’s office extended thanks to the individual who reported the abuse, Carilion Rockbridge and Roanoke hospitals, the Rockbridge County Commonwealth’s Attorney’s office and the Rockbridge Area Department of Social Service for their assistance and cooperation with the investigation.
