Laken Snelling entered a plea of not guilty to a charge of manslaughter during a court appearance on Friday, April 10. According to People, the 22-year-old former University of Kentucky student is facing serious legal consequences following the death of her newborn child. This latest court date, held in Kentucky, saw the defendant arrive with her legal team and remain silent while her lawyers formally addressed the charge on her behalf.
The proceedings were brief, and she is expected to return to court for a preliminary hearing on May 14, followed by another status hearing on June 12. The case stems from a series of events that unfolded in August 2025. According to the arrest report from the Lexington Police Department, officers were called to Snelling’s off-campus residence on the morning of August 27, 2025.
Her roommates had contacted the authorities after discovering blood in her bedroom and reporting that they had heard unusual noises coming from that part of the home earlier that day. When the police arrived, they discovered the body of a newborn wrapped in a towel and concealed inside a trash bag in the bedroom closet. A later autopsy conducted by the authorities concluded that the infant died from asphyxia by undetermined means.
She went to class hours later like nothing happened
Snelling was not present when the officers arrived at the home. Investigators determined she had left the residence to attend class just hours after the birth took place. Once police located her, she was taken to a university hospital for medical treatment and placed under arrest. While at the hospital, Snelling chose to waive her Miranda rights and spoke with law enforcement. The details provided in the search warrant affidavits describe a timeline that is difficult to process.
Snelling told officers that she gave birth at 4:00 AM on August 27, noting that the baby fell onto the bedroom floor. She claimed that she stayed awake for roughly 30 minutes before falling asleep on top of the infant. When she woke up later, she stated that the newborn was turning blue and purple. The account provided in the affidavits continues with the claim that she wrapped the infant in a towel like a burrito and laid next to the child on the floor.
She described this action as providing her with comfort at the time. After returning to sleep, she set an alarm for 7:30 AM. Upon waking, she allegedly cleaned the blood and afterbirth from the room, placed the infant in a trash bag, and put the placenta into a zip lock bag before adding that to the same trash bag. It is a grim sequence of events that has led to these criminal charges, mirroring a similar tragedy where a Boston couple is now facing serious manslaughter charges after their 5-week-old baby died.
Beyond the manslaughter charge, Snelling is facing three additional counts based on a grand jury indictment from March. These include abuse of a corpse, tampering with physical evidence, and concealing the birth of an infant. She previously entered not guilty pleas for these specific charges during her arraignment in September. Following her initial arrest, she was held at the Fayette County Detention Center, but she was eventually released on September 2 after posting a 100,000 dollar surety bond.
Although the case is being handled in Kentucky, the court allowed Snelling to return to Tennessee as part of her pre-trial release conditions. Initially, she was permitted to split her time between the homes of her mother and father. However, the terms were adjusted a month into her release. She is now required to wear a GPS monitoring device and must remain at her father’s home in Tennessee. Before these events, Snelling was an active member of the university community.
She was part of the school’s STUNT team, which achieved recognition as runners-up in the 2025 NCAA competition. Additionally, she had a background as a competitive cheerleader, having participated on the university’s team for three years. Beyond her athletic involvement, she was known as a decorated beauty queen who continued to compete in pageants up until the time of her arrest. She withdrew from the University of Kentucky shortly after the incident occurred.
As the legal process continues, her lawyers have not provided any comments regarding the charges or the ongoing developments in the courtroom.
Published: Apr 10, 2026 02:30 pm