Warning: this article discusses the death of a child which some readers may find distressing
There has been a significant development in the case of a cheerleader who placed her newborn son in a garbage bag and left him in a closet.
Last month, 21-year-old Laken Snelling faced arrest and was charged with abuse of a corpse, tampering with physical evidence, and concealing the birth of an infant following police response to a report of an unresponsive infant.
In a statement, police detailed the incident: “On Wednesday, August 27, 2025, around 10:30 a.m., officers were dispatched for an unresponsive infant at a residence in the 400 block of Park Avenue. When officers arrived, they located an infant that was pronounced deceased at the scene.
“Laken Snelling, 21, was arrested on August 31, 2025, and charged with Abuse of a Corpse, Tampering with Physical Evidence, and Concealing the Birth of an Infant.
“She is currently being held at the Fayette County Detention Center. Ms. Snelling is the infant’s mother.”
As reported by LEX 18 News, the University of Kentucky student confessed to giving birth and ‘concealing the birth by cleaning any evidence, placing all cleaning items used inside of a black trash bag, including the infant, who was wrapped in a towel’, as per the arrest citation.
Since her arrest, Snelling has maintained her innocence regarding the charges and appeared in court recently, where she waived her right to a preliminary hearing.
Snelling is currently residing with her parents after being released on a $100,000 bond by a Fayette District Court judge on September 2, as she awaits sentencing.
Initially, the cause of the baby’s death was under investigation, as Snelling had informed police she had lost consciousness on top of the newborn and found him unresponsive upon waking. However, she later confessed to something significant that updates the case.
Newly released court documents present a different narrative from Snelling.
According to these documents, when Snelling was taken to UK Hospital the day after delivery, she shared information with the University of Kentucky’s Labor and Delivery unit staff.
There, she recounted that the baby had shown ‘a little bit of fetal movement’ and made a ‘whimper’ sound, which led her to ‘guess’ that he was alive at birth.
The Kentucky Kernel reported that the infant seemed to be full term.
Laken Snelling was pursuing Interdisciplinary Disability Studies before dropping out. She had also been a participant of the University of Kentucky’s competitive cheerleading STUNT team. Prior to her arrest, she had shared a TikTok video outlining her plans for the upcoming year.
Her video used symbols to depict her aspirations, including an engagement ring, a house, money, and a woman feeding a baby a bottle.
In Kentucky, abortion is only permitted in cases where the mother’s life is in danger.