Photo: Coal town guy · CC BY-SA 4.0Crime recorded in Helen, and why it isn’t graded
Out to 25 miles, the count of graded towns reaches 2. Helen has no police department of its own: it’s an unincorporated community (a census-designated place) in Raleigh County. The Raleigh County Sheriff’s Office reports to the FBI for the parts of the county without police of their own, so there are no figures for Helen alone, and no Safety Grade. For a graded neighbor, the nearest is Beckley (D−), 13 miles away.
What stands out about safety in Helen
Policed by the county
Helen is a census-designated place, with no town government. Crimes there are reported to the FBI inside the Raleigh County Sheriff’s Office’s totals for the county. County police ↓
Counts, not rates
The FBI doesn’t publish how many people the Raleigh County Sheriff’s Office covers, so its totals can’t be turned into a per-resident rate or a grade for Helen. County police ↓
The nearest graded towns
The closest West Virginia towns with their own police figures are Beckley (D−, 13 mi), Oak Hill (B−, 25 mi), Bluefield (C−, 26 mi). Nearby towns can differ a lot from Helen. Nearest ↓
Written from the FBI data on this page. Figures are crimes reported to police, not convictions.
What the Raleigh County Sheriff’s Office reports
Reports to the FBI for the parts of Raleigh County without police of their own, which include Helen.
Property crimes
Violent crimes
2025 offenses reported by the Raleigh County Sheriff’s Office
Counts, not rates: the FBI doesn’t publish how many people each agency covers. FBI Uniform Crime Reporting, Tables 10–11.
Crimes reported to the FBI for the whole area the department covers, by year.
The nearest West Virginia towns with a Safety Grade
| Town | Grade | Distance | Violent | Property |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beckley | D− | 13 mi | 6.5 | 73.4 |
| Oak Hill | B− | 25 mi | 1.6 | 11.9 |
| Bluefield | C− | 26 mi | 7.1 | 7.0 |
| Fayetteville | C+ | 32 mi | 1.0 | 17.2 |
| Summersville | C+ | 52 mi | 1.4 | 17.3 |
| Charleston | D | 52 mi | 5.7 | 34.6 |
Straight-line distance from the center of Helen. Nearby towns can differ a lot from Helen.
Each town’s own police figures, per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025.
Helen and its neighbors
| Town | Grade | Violent | Property |
|---|
Crimes reported to the FBI per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025.
How reported crime compares across the town line. Tap a town to see its safety page.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- It’s reported crime. Only incidents reported to and recorded by police appear here. Many crimes are never reported to police.
- A county agency covers a wide area. Its totals mix many communities, so they say little about any one of them.
- Gaps are real gaps. A missing year means the department didn’t report a full year, not that nothing happened.
How the grade is calculated, for every town: How TownRatings grades safety →
Questions about safety in Helen
Is Helen, WV safe?
There is no Safety Grade for Helen. The nearest West Virginia towns with a grade are Beckley (D−, 13 mi), Oak Hill (B−, 25 mi), Bluefield (C−, 26 mi).
Who polices Helen?
The Raleigh County Sheriff’s Office. Helen is an unincorporated community, and the department reports to the FBI for the parts of Raleigh County without police of their own.
Heads-up board
Your answer becomes a post in Town Square.
Please don’t name or describe individuals. In an emergency, call 911.
Neighbors looking out for each other in Helen.
Crime: FBI Uniform Crime Reporting Program, Crime Data Explorer: offenses known to law enforcement by city, and state and national rates. Counts are crimes reported to police, not convictions. The Safety Grade is our own summary of that data, not an official rating. Road deaths: NHTSA Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), 2019–2023. This isn’t an official statement of public safety. In an emergency, call 911.