UK student charged in newborn death and concealment near campus

A University of Kentucky senior was arrested over the weekend after police say the body of a newborn she gave birth to was found wrapped in a towel inside a black trash bag in a closet at a residence near campus. Laken Ashlee Snelling, 21, faces charges of abuse of a corpse, tampering with physical evidence and concealing the birth of an infant, authorities said.

Lexington police said officers were dispatched Wednesday morning to a home on the 400 block of Park Avenue following a report of an unresponsive infant. The child was pronounced dead at the scene at about 10:30 a.m., local reports said. Police documents obtained by reporters state the infant was located wrapped in a towel inside of a black trash bag that had been placed in a closet.

Snelling was interviewed by officers and, after being read her rights, admitted to giving birth and to attempting to conceal the birth by cleaning and placing used cleaning items into the garbage bag, the arrest citation says. Police have said the Fayette County Coroner's Office is investigating the cause of death and that the department's Special Victims Section is continuing its inquiry.

Accounts differ slightly on the date Snelling was...