Kentucky Woman Pleads Guilty in Newborn Death Case
Laken Snelling pleaded guilty to charges including manslaughter in the death of her newborn in Lexington.
3 reports on this incident · first at Aug 24, 2026, 8:20 a.m. ET
Earlier reports
Aug 24, 2026, 5:46 p.m. ET
Kentucky Woman Pleads Guilty in Newborn Death Case
Laken Snelling pleaded guilty in Fayette County Circuit Court to charges including manslaughter, abuse of a corpse, tampering with evidence, and concealing the birth of an infant, according to reports from WOWT and WIVK.
The government alleged that Snelling gave birth to a baby boy, wrapped him in a towel, placed him in a trash bag in a closet, and did not tell anyone about the birth, leading to the infant's death by asphyxia, as reported by WIVK. WOWT reported that the government claimed Snelling ended her newborn's life, put the towels in a plastic bag, and didn't tell anyone about the birth.
Lexington Police investigated the case. Sentencing has not yet been scheduled.
Aug 24, 2026, 8:20 a.m. ETFirst report
Kentucky Woman Pleads Guilty in Newborn Death Case
Laken Snelling pleaded guilty on August 24, 2026, in Fayette County Circuit Court to charges of manslaughter, abuse of a corpse, tampering with evidence, and concealing the birth of an infant, according to wivk.com.
The government alleged that Snelling gave birth to a baby boy, wrapped him in a towel, placed him in a trash bag in a closet, and did not tell anyone about the birth, leading to the infant's death by asphyxia, as reported by wivk.com. The Lexington Police investigated the case.
Sentencing has not been scheduled, and further details were not immediately available.
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- Version 124 Aug 2026, 21:46current
First published.
- Version 124 Aug 2026, 12:20current
First published.
- Version 124 Aug 2026, 21:49current
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