A former University of Kentucky student-athlete has pleaded guilty to charges related to the death of her infant son, who was found inside a trash bag in a closet.Laken Snelling, 22, a member of the university's STUNT team, initially pleaded not guilty before changing her plea on Friday in connection with her newborn's death, FOX 56 reported.She was indicted by a Fayette County grand jury and faced a slew of charges, including abuse of a corpse, tampering with physical evidence, and concealing the birth of an infant."I was under a lot of emotional stress and my baby came unexpectedly," Snelling said while crying in court.
"And instead of helping him, I ended his life and afterward I cleaned up and didn’t tell anyone."AUTOPSY RESULTS DEEPEN MYSTERY OF INFANT ALLEGEDLY FOUND DEAD IN UNIVERSITY OF KENTUCKY ATHLETE'S CLOSET21-year-old Laken Snelling allegedly hid her dead newborn in a closet.(Getty Images/Fayette County Detention Center)When asked by Judge Diane Minnifield how she ended the baby's life, Snelling said: "I deprived him of oxygen."Commonwealth's attorney Kimberly Baird said that Snelling’s attorney approached prosecutors as plans changed.ATTORNEY WHO DEFENDED DC SNIPER SAYS KOHBERGER FACES 'MONUMENTAL UPHILL BATTLE' UNDOING GUILTY PLEA"This was a case that needed to go straight to the grand jury anyway, as opposed to just entering a plea," Baird said, according to the news outlet.
"The grand jury returned the indictment for first-degree manslaughter, and then they returned and suggested that offer.We accepted."Officers in Lexington responded to reports of an unresponsive infant on Aug.
27, 2024, and found the child's remains inside a black trash bag, according to a news release from the city of Lexington.The baby's body was cold.KENTUCKY COLLEGE ATHLETE ACCUSED OF HIDING DEAD BABY IN CLOSET WAS ‘SERIAL BULLY,’ FORMER CLASSMATE SAYSLaken Snelling, 22, a former University of Kentucky student, has pleaded guilty in connection with the death of her...