Trendpills
A Wisconsin judge has affirmed that Morgan Geyser, one of a pair of women convicted in the 2014 "Slender Man" stabbing case, can proceed with her planned conditional release from a psychiatric hospital. The ruling by Waukesha County Circuit Judge Michael Bohren came after state officials filed a last-minute petition attempting to keep her committed, citing new concerns.
Prosecutors argued for the revocation of her release, raising alarms that Geyser had been reading gory novels and was communicating with a man who collects memorabilia from murderers. However, after a hearing, Judge Bohren rejected the state’s petition and decided the plans for her conditional release could move forward. Medical experts who previously supported her release maintained their position, stating that the new information did not alter their assessment that she was ready for a supervised return to the community.
Geyser, now 23, has spent seven years at the Winnebago Mental Health Institute since her 2018 conviction. She pleaded guilty to attempted first-degree intentional homicide for the 2014 attack. At age 12, Geyser and her friend Anissa Weier lured classmate Payton Leutner into a Waukesha park, where Geyser stabbed Leutner 19 times in an effort to appease the fictional online horror character Slender Man. Geyser was sentenced to a 40-year term in a mental health facility.
The process for Geyser's release has faced several hurdles. An initial plan to place her in a Sun Prairie group home was withdrawn following public backlash, leading the facility to decline her as a patient. While the state's late pushback was a significant challenge, details of the current, approved release plan remain sealed by the court.
Following the court's decision, Geyser’s attorneys argued that the state's concerns were unjustified. With the judge's approval now reaffirmed, officials can finalize the arrangements for her supervised transition. The court's ruling ultimately upheld the release under a confidential community supervision plan.
