The new charge came after the state medical examiner said the baby found in a Lexington closet was born alive and died of asphyxia.

LEXINGTON, Ky. — A Fayette County grand jury has indicted former University of Kentucky student Laken Snelling on a first-degree manslaughter charge after investigators said a newborn found dead in a closet at her Park Avenue home in August 2025 was born alive and later died of asphyxia.

The indictment changed the shape of a case that had already drawn attention in Lexington because Snelling, 21, was first charged with abuse of a corpse, tampering with physical evidence and concealing the birth of an infant. The added homicide count followed months of lab work and medical review. Prosecutors say the grand jury considered multiple homicide options before returning first-degree manslaughter, raising the stakes ahead of Snelling’s arraignment and any later decisions about plea negotiations or trial.

Police first answered a call at about 10:30 a.m. on Aug. 27, 2025, at a residence in the 400 block of Park Avenue, a few blocks from the University of Kentucky campus. Officers found an unresponsive infant and pronounced him dead at the scene. In the first public stage of the case, the Fayette County Coroner’s Office had not yet listed a final cause and manner of death, and the criminal allegations centered on what police said happened after the birth. Snelling was arrested Aug. 31, 2025, on the three original counts. The turning point came months later, when the Kentucky Medical Examiner’s Office determined the child had been born alive and that his cause of death was asphyxia by undetermined means. That finding gave prosecutors a basis to present a homicide theory to the grand jury.

According to court records described by local media, Snelling told investigators she gave birth around 4 a.m. and did not think the baby was breathing. She also said she passed out on top of the child. When she woke up, she told police, the baby was blue and purple. Records cited by local outlets say she wrapped the baby in a towel, later placed the child and placenta in a black trash bag and put the bag in a closet. An arrest citation said the infant was later found wrapped in a towel inside that bag. Prosecutors have also pointed to statements Snelling allegedly made at the hospital, where records said she reported the baby made a “whimper” and that she guessed he was alive. Those details became more important after the autopsy narrowed the medical question that had been unresolved in the first days of the investigation.

The legal path of the case shows how slowly some death investigations move before a final charging decision. In September 2025, Snelling entered a not guilty plea on the original charges and was released under court-ordered restrictions. The coroner’s early report called the manner of death “currently undetermined” and said more microscopic analysis was needed. By late fall, prosecutors were seeking broader records. The Lexington Police Department, the Fayette Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office, the Kentucky Medical Examiner’s Office, the Fayette County Coroner’s Office and the Kentucky State Police Forensic Laboratory all took part in the investigation. That multiagency review stretched into March 2026, when the city said the grand jury had indicted Snelling on first-degree manslaughter along with the earlier charges.

Snelling’s status outside the courtroom also changed as the case unfolded. The University of Kentucky said she had been a member of its STUNT team for the previous three seasons, then later told local reporters she had withdrawn from school and was no longer on the team. On March 11, 2026, court records showed an arrest warrant had been issued after the indictment. She was booked into the Fayette County Detention Center on March 12, then posted a $10,000 bond later that day, according to local reporting. Her arraignment was set for April 10. Fayette Commonwealth’s Attorney Kimberly Baird told a local station that grand jurors were given the four levels of homicide and chose first-degree manslaughter. That short statement offered one of the clearest public signs yet of how prosecutors are framing the case.

The unanswered questions remain significant. Investigators have not publicly described a single precise mechanism that caused the asphyxia, and the city’s update said the death was caused by asphyxia “by undetermined means.” Public records also leave open what additional forensic testimony prosecutors may rely on if the case proceeds to trial. Neighbors, classmates and campus observers first learned of the matter as a shocking death investigation near campus. Now it stands as a homicide case built on medical findings, Snelling’s own reported statements and what police say they found inside the home. The combination of those elements turned an already serious case into one that could carry a much heavier punishment if prosecutors secure a conviction.

As of April 6, 2026, Snelling remains charged with first-degree manslaughter, abuse of a corpse, tampering with physical evidence and concealing the birth of an infant. The next public milestone is her April 10 arraignment in Fayette County court.

Author note: Last updated April 6, 2026.