Virginia Father Sentenced to 20 Years After 2-Month-Old Child Found Not Breathing And Pronounced Dead

A Virginia father was sentenced to 20 years in jail after he pleaded guilty to the murder of his 2-month-old child, according to authorities.

On May 17, 2022, deputies responded to a home in Vinton for a call of a 2-month-old child who was not breathing, according to the Bedford County Sheriff’s Office.

Deputies arrived and tried to revive the child but were not successful. The infant was pronounced dead at the scene.

On May 20, 2022, the sheriff’s office announced the arrest of Jordan Cody Scheffler on charges of second-degree murder and felony child neglect. He was taken into custody earlier that week.

According to authorities, Scheffler admitted to hitting the child’s head accidentally, more than once, during rough play, WSET reported.

Investigators reportedly confronted him with the results from the autopsy, which were inconsistent with Scheffler’s version of events. He then changed his story, stating he hit the child’s head against the door frame two to three times, and perhaps a fourth time, officials said.

Months later, Scheffler was talking with his probation officer and said he did not strike the child and that the injuries were caused by shaken baby syndrome.

According to the autopsy, the child died from blunt force injuries to the head.

On Nov. 21, 2023, a judge sentenced Scheffler to 20 years in jail after he pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and child abuse on June 2, officials said.

Scheffler was given an active sentence of 10 years per charge, WSET reported. Upon release, he was ordered 10 years of good behavior and to not have any unsupervised contact with any child.

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Before his sentencing, Scheffler asked for forgiveness from his loved ones in the courtroom.

Scheffler said, "I want to apologize to both sides of the family. I want to apologize to the woman I love," according to WSET.

Bedford County Commonwealth's Attorney Wes Nance told WSET, "To obtain a conviction and get a sentence close to the top of the sentencing guidelines is very rewarding."