Laken Snelling University of Kentucky cheerleader admits hearing baby whimper admits baby was born alive in released court documents as she awaits whether she’ ll be indicted?
Will she be facing murder charges?
The University of Kentucky cheerleader accused of hiding her dead baby inside her closet told doctors the infant was born alive and that she had heard it ‘whimper’ before ultimately stuffing it in a trash bag, according to newly released court documents.
The new details mark an about-face for Laken Snelling, 21, who initially told cops she believed she gave birth to a dead baby.
University of Kentucky cheerleader admits hearing newborn whimper, admits baby born alive
Snelling allegedly made the stunning admission one day after she delivered the infant, following her arrest and interrogation by police for allegedly concealing evidence of the crime.
The baby had shown ‘a little bit of fetal movement’ and made a ‘whimper,’ she allegedly told staff at the University of Kentucky Labor and Delivery unit, adding she ‘guessed’ he was alive at birth, according to court records obtained by the student-run University of Kentucky outlet the Kentucky Kernel.
The infant appeared to have been full-term when the body was found.
Snelling, a member of the university’s STUNT team, allegedly took several photos while she was in labor — but deleted them ‘in an attempt to hide the birth,’ cops said.
A case of college girl living her best life trying to hide her pregnancy?
The college student was arrested just hours after she gave birth to the child in her off-campus house. Police were called by her roommate, who, after hearing suspicious noises in the middle of the night, snooped into Snelling’s room after she had left for class and discovered the newborn.
Snelling told cops she had given birth around 4 a.m. on Aug. 27 and that the baby fell on the floor, but she didn’t think he was ‘breathing or alive,’ according to the affidavit.
The student then claimed she passed out, ‘falling on top of the baby.’
When she woke up, Snelling said she saw ‘the baby turning blue and purple.’
Kids can we stop here for a moment. Is any of this sounding real or plausible? And just the fabrication of a young woman who didn’t want to admit being pregnant and making the responsible decision to give up the newborn to one of many outlets available to women as part of the Safe Haven Law available in all states?
Believing the boy was dead, Snelling according to documents then ‘wrapped the baby up like a burrito and laid next to it’ because it ‘gave her a little comfort in the moment’.
Snelling allegedly wrapped her son in a towel and then stuffed him into a trash bag, which she then hid in her closet, before showering and cleaning up the blood in her room, authorities stated in arresting documents.
A desperate bid to hide pregnancy gone wrong
With her roommates questioning her about the noises they’d heard overnight, Snelling allegedly claimed to be sick and said she was going to a doctor, according to authorities.
The roommates did not know Snelling was pregnant — though one told cops they were suspicious that their friend had been hiding a pregnancy.
She told cops she left for class, but instead sat in her car and ordered McDonald’s before returning home to find police waiting for her.
Snelling has pleaded not guilty to charges of abuse of a corpse, tampering with physical evidence and concealing the birth of an infant.
To date an initial autopsy has not been able to conclusively rule the cause of death of the newborn.
Snelling has been charged with abuse of a corpse, tampering with evidence, and concealing the birth of an infant. She waived her preliminary hearing and remains out on bond under home incarceration with her parents in Tennessee as now awaits a decision from the grand jury on whether she will be formally indicted.
The 21 year old has since dropped out of the university and is no longer a member of the STUNT cheerleading team.
