A woman in California who operated a daycare from her home has admitted that she let an infant die in her care.
Roxanne Helus, 49, pleaded guilty in June to several charges connected to the 2025 death of 5-month-old Christian Olvera. On Monday, a court sentenced Helus to six years in prison after convicting her of child abuse and endangerment, involuntary manslaughter, and DUI. In a press release issued at the time of her plea, the San Joaquin District Attorney’s Office said Helus “admitted the aggravating factor that she took advantage of a position of trust and confidence” as someone tasked with the responsibility of watching children.
Prosecutors said Helus was watching six children on Oct. 22, 2025, including baby Christian.
Officers from the Manteca Police Department responded to Helus’ home in the central California city of Manteca after she said she found that Christian was “not breathing,” as Law&Crime previously reported. When officers arrived, another adult was performing CPR on the baby. The officers noticed that Helus was “intoxicated.”
Doctors transferred Christian to a local hospital and later to Oakland Children’s Hospital. He was taken off life support on Oct. 24, 2025. Prosecutors said he died of an anoxic brain injury, which occurs when oxygen is completely cut off from the brain.
Prosecutors said investigators determined that Helus started drinking alcohol at 4 a.m. on Oct. 22, 2025. Later that morning, she drove two children to school with a blood alcohol content of 0.29%. Helus later had more than $100 worth of alcoholic beverages delivered to her home while several children remained in her care.
At 11:30 a.m., Helus brought Christian to a travel trailer on her property, which was “not an authorized part of the licensed daycare facility.” While in the trailer with Christian, Helus continued drinking. A couple of hours later, the baby had a “medical emergency,” but Helus was too intoxicated to notice.
The Stockton Record, a local news outlet, was at Helus’ sentencing hearing on Monday, where Christian’s family delivered statements about losing their baby. Christian’s mother, Christina Olvera, reportedly said her other children still asked about their late baby brother. She told the court that Christian’s baby clothes remained in a box they would never open again.
Olvera told Helus, “I will never forgive you,” and “You made choices that took him away forever.”
A judge sentenced Helus to six years in state prison and ordered her to pay $12,818 to the Victims Compensation Board and $3,327.22 to the families of the other children she was responsible for that day. The judge also forbade Helus from operating a daycare or participating in any kind of child care.
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