Former Kentucky Cheerleader Sentenced to 10 Years for Infant’s Death

By Andrew Powell (/journals/andrew-powell)

Laken Snelling, a former University of Kentucky cheerleader, was sentenced to 10 years in prison Friday after pleading guilty to first-degree manslaughter in connection with the death of her infant son. According to Fox News, Snelling, who was a senior at the university at the time, also pleaded guilty to three additional charges: abuse of a corpse, tampering with physical evidence and concealing the birth of an infant. The case began after Lexington police responded to a report from Snelling’s roommates in August 2025. The roommates had heard loud noises coming from a closet, prompting officers to investigate. When police arrived, they found the infant inside the closet. According to a statement from the city of Lexington, the baby was cold to the touch and had been wrapped in a trash bag. The Kentucky Medical Examiner’s Office determined that the infant had been born alive and died from asphyxiation, according to the city’s statement. During her court hearing, Judge Diane Minnifield asked Snelling how she caused the infant’s death. Snelling responded, “I deprived him of oxygen.” Snelling became emotional while describing what happened in court. “I was under a lot of emotional stress and my baby came unexpectedly,” she said through tears. “And instead of helping him, I ended his life and afterward I cleaned up and didn’t tell anyone,” she added. Snelling had originally been indicted in March on the manslaughter charge and three other counts before entering a guilty plea in August. Investigators said Snelling told them she remained awake for about 30 minutes after giving birth before passing out on top of the baby. When she woke up, court documents state, she saw the infant “turning blue and purple.” The investigation also uncovered efforts to remove evidence connected to the pregnancy and birth. According to court documents, investigators found that Snelling had deleted photographs of her labor from her phone along with other evidence related to her pregnancy. Police arrested Snelling in August 2025 after the discovery inside the closet. Her guilty plea resolved the criminal case, with the judge sentencing her Friday to a decade behind bars. Watch the video below: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vuPZz6z9UII

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