A former beauty queen and University of Kentucky student has been indicted on a manslaughter charge after authorities determined the newborn baby found hidden in her bedroom closet had been born alive.

Laken Snelling, 22, now faces a charge of first-degree manslaughter along with three additional felony charges tied to the death of her infant, according to the Lexington Police Department.

A Fayette County grand jury voted to indict Snelling after hearing evidence in the case, including findings that the baby had been alive at birth.

In Kentucky, a conviction for first-degree manslaughter carries a possible sentence of 10 to 20 years in prison.

The three other charges against Snelling — abuse of a corpse, tampering with physical evidence and concealing the birth of an infant — had already been filed at the time of her arrest in August 2025.

Police say the infant’s body was discovered inside Snelling’s off-campus home near the University of Kentucky.

According to investigators, the newborn had been wrapped in a towel and placed inside a trash bag that was hidden in the closet of Snelling’s bedroom.

Authorities were called to the home on Aug. 27 after Snelling’s roommates became concerned.

According to arrest records, the roommates reported hearing strange noises coming from Snelling’s room earlier that morning. When they later discovered blood inside the room, they contacted police.

By the time officers arrived, Snelling had already left the house.

Investigators say she had gone to class despite having recently given birth.

According to police documents, Snelling later went to a McDonald’s and parked outside a student health clinic before eventually returning home, where she was detained and taken in for questioning.

Hours later, while receiving treatment at the University of Kentucky Hospital, Snelling waived her Miranda rights and spoke with investigators, according to search warrant affidavits.

In that interview, she allegedly told police she gave birth around 4 a.m. on Aug. 27.

According to investigators, Snelling said the baby fell onto the floor of her bedroom during the birth.

She allegedly told police that about 30 minutes later she fell asleep and accidentally rolled onto the newborn while sleeping.

When she woke up, she said the infant was “turning blue and purple.”

According to the affidavits, Snelling told police she wrapped the baby in a towel “like a burrito” and lay beside the child on the floor.

She reportedly said doing so gave her “a little comfort in the moment.”

Investigators say she then went back to sleep until her alarm went off at around 7:30 a.m.

After waking, authorities say Snelling cleaned up blood and afterbirth from her bedroom before placing the towel-wrapped baby in a trash bag. She also placed the placenta in a plastic bag and added it to the same trash bag before hiding it in her closet, according to investigators.

An autopsy later determined the newborn died from “asphyxia by undetermined means,” police said.

Snelling was initially arrested later that day and held in the Fayette County Detention Center.

She was released on a $100,000 surety bond in early September and allowed to remain on house arrest at her father’s home in Tennessee.

At first, she had been permitted to divide her time between both parents’ homes. But court officials later revoked that arrangement and ordered Snelling to wear a GPS monitoring device.

Since the arrest, Snelling has withdrawn from the University of Kentucky, where she had been a member of the school’s STUNT team, a competitive cheer-style sport.

The team finished as runner-up in last year’s NCAA competition.

Authorities have not yet announced when Snelling will return to Lexington to be formally arraigned on the new manslaughter charge. The case remains ongoing.