Former Cheerleader Maintains Innocence in Newborn’s Death

Laken Snelling, a 21-year-old ex-cheerleader from the University of Kentucky, is insisting on her innocence regarding the death of her newborn son. The infant’s body was reportedly stuffed into garbage bags, and Snelling allegedly ordered food from McDonald’s shortly after.

In court on Friday, Snelling pleaded not guilty to first-degree manslaughter. Authorities say she left the baby in a closet to die after giving birth in the early hours of August 27.

Following the discovery of the baby’s body, she faced additional charges including abuse of a corpse, tampering with evidence, and concealing the birth, all of which she also denied.

Just last month, she was charged with involuntary manslaughter after the Kentucky Medical Examiner’s Office informed a grand jury that the infant had been born alive and died from “asphyxiation by an unspecified means.”

Snelling was booked into the Fayette County Detention Center; her father posted a $10,000 bail, after which she was seen out in town later that day.

If convicted, she could face up to 20 years for the manslaughter charge and an additional 11 years for the other charges.

The tragic situation was discovered by Snelling’s college roommates, who found the deceased baby boy in a black bag inside a closet in their off-campus apartment. They also reported a blood-stained towel and a plastic bag with evidence of childbirth in her room, noting the baby was “cold to the touch.”

The roommates became suspicious, recalling strange noises coming from Snelling’s room around 4 a.m., which coincided with the timing of the birth.

In the aftermath, Snelling allegedly attempted to clean the area, took a shower, and left for McDonald’s instead of attending her morning class and a visit to the school clinic.

Initially, she told police that the baby had fallen to the floor and seemed unresponsive. However, she later altered her narrative, claiming she’d passed out “on top of the baby” and, upon waking, found the infant “turning blue and turning purple.”

Investigations also revealed that Snelling informed medical staff that her newborn displayed “a little fetal movement” and was “sobbing” right after birth.

A pretrial conference is set for May 14, with a status hearing planned for June 12. Attempts to reach her attorney for comments were unsuccessful.