A University of Kentucky student gave birth to a full-term boy in the quiet hours before dawn, only to stuff his tiny, lifeless body into a black trash bag hours later, according to police records that paint a grim picture of secrecy and denial —
Laken Snelling, 21, faces a felony charge of abuse of a corpse in connection with the death of her newborn baby boy, discovered in her off-campus apartment on August 27.
Records from Lexington police, obtained through a search warrant, reveal the infant “appeared to be full term when discovered,” underscoring the humanity and viability of the child in his final moments.
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Snelling gave birth alone around 4 a.m. in her bedroom, roommates later told investigators. The sounds of labored cries and thuds roused her housemates, who grew increasingly concerned as the morning unfolded.
In a statement to medical staff at UK Hospital shortly after her arrest, Snelling recounted the harrowing details: her baby displayed “a little bit of fetal movement” at birth, he made a “whimper” and that she “guessed” the baby was alive.
Yet, in a later account to police detailed in the affidavit, Snelling claimed she did not believe the baby was alive. She described falling asleep on top of the infant after the delivery, only to wake and see “the baby turning blue and purple.”
Wrapping him in a towel, convinced of his death, she stowed the newborn and the placenta in a trash bag inside her closet.
By 7:30 a.m., as her alarm blared, Snelling stirred again. Instead of seeking help, she fabricated excuses for the earlier disturbances.
Around 8:40 a.m., she told her roommates she had passed out early that morning and caused the loud noises, and then said she was going to the doctor because “she had not eaten and had not been feeling well.”
Snelling skipped her 9:30 a.m. class, ordering food through the McDonald’s app before driving to the university clinic — but never entering. She returned to her residence just after 10:30 a.m., where police were waiting.
Officers arrested her on the spot after roommates, suspicious of her sudden “flat” stomach and evasive behavior, had alerted authorities. A search of her room uncovered the “blood-soaked towel on the floor and a plastic bag containing evidence of childbirth.
“Further investigation revealed Snelling’s efforts to conceal her pregnancy. A warrant for her social media accounts showed she had deleted photos “to hide evidence of the pregnancy, birth and newborn baby.” Police believe additional items and information related to the pregnancy and the birth of the full-term baby may have been erased.
Snelling, who no longer attends the University of Kentucky, was arraigned last week and entered a not guilty plea. She remains free on a $2,500 cash bond, with her next court date set for October 10.
The Fayette County Coroner’s Office has not publicly released the official cause of death, but the infant’s full-term status and Snelling’s own admissions of signs of life at birth have ignited outrage.
