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Slender Man stabbing
Slender Man stabbing
	Waukesha Waukesha (Wisconsin) Waukesha Waukesha (the United States) Location of Waukesha in Waukesha County, Wisconsin
Location	Waukesha, Wisconsin
Coordinates	42°58′53″N 88°13′26″W / 42.9814°N 88.2239°W
Date	May 31, 2014; 10 years ago
Target	Payton Leutner
Attack type	Attempted murder by stabbing
Weapons	Knife
Injured	1 (Payton Leutner; 19 stab wounds to artery of the heart, diaphragm, liver, and stomach)
Perpetrators	Morgan Geyser and Anissa Weier
Motive	Belief that murdering Leutner would appease the fictional character Slender Man; Delusions from schizophrenia and psychosis (Geyser);
Verdict	Not guilty by reason of insanity;
Charges	Geyser:; Attempted first-degree intentional homicide; Weier:; Attempted second-degree intentional homicide
Criminal status	Geyser:; Institutionalized at Winnebago Mental Health Institute; Weier:; Released; under supervision until age 37
Criminal penalty	Geyser:; 40 years to life in mental health institution; Weier:; 25 years to life in mental health institution (released after 7 years)

On May 31, 2014, in Waukesha, Wisconsin, United States, two 12-year-old girls, Anissa Weier and Morgan Geyser, lured their friend Payton Leutner into a wooded area of a local park and stabbed her 19 times to appease the fictional character Slender Man.^[2] Weier and Geyser were both found not guilty by mental disease or defect and committed to mental health institutions. Weier received a sentence of 25 years to life and Geyser was sentenced to 40 years to life. After seven years in custody, Weier was granted early release and will be under supervision until age 37.

Background

Slender Man is a fictional entity created on Something Awful, an online forum, for a 2009 paranormal image Photoshop contest.^[3] The Slender Man myth was subsequently expanded online with fan fiction and visual art depicting the entity.^[4]

Slender Man is an unnaturally tall and thin character with a white, featureless head. He is depicted wearing a black suit, black tie, black shoes, and white collared shirt. He is sometimes shown with tentacles growing out of his back. In the Slender Man mythos, the entity causes amnesia, bouts of coughing, and paranoid behavior in his victims. He is often depicted hiding in forests.^[4]

Events of the attack

The stabbing took place on May 31, 2014, during a game of hide-and-seek in heavily wooded Davids Park near Waukesha, Wisconsin. The perpetrators, Anissa Weier and Morgan Geyser, pinned down Payton Isabella Leutner (also known as Bella, a nickname used at the time of the crime)^[5] and stabbed her nineteen times in the arms, legs, and torso with a five-inch-long (13 cm) blade. Two wounds were to major organs. One stab wound missed a major artery by less than a millimeter and another went through her diaphragm, cutting into her liver and stomach.^[6] After the attack, Weier and Geyser told Leutner to lie down while they found help, which they did not do.^[4] Afterwards, Leutner dragged herself to a nearby road where she was found by a cyclist who called emergency services.^[7] Surgeons operated for six hours to repair critical trauma to organs and tissue in her torso and abdomen.

Five hours after the attack, Weier and Geyser were apprehended by police near Steinhafel's Furniture Store on Interstate 94,^[8] approximately 4.9 miles (7.9 km) from the attack location. They were in possession of the knife used in the stabbing, which was found by police in a bag they carried. They said they were traveling to meet Slender Man at his home, called Slender Mansion, in the Nicolet National Forest, 200 miles (320 km) from where they were apprehended.^[5] During their interrogations, which were not conducted with a guardian or counsel, Geyser was described as displaying no empathy and Weier was described as displaying guilt for stabbing Leutner, although both stated that the attack was necessary to appease Slender Man.^[9]

Leutner left the hospital seven days after the attack.^[10] She returned to school in September 2014.^[6]^[11]

Geyser's mental state

During the police investigation and pre-trial psychiatric evaluations, Morgan Geyser disclosed lifelong visual and auditory hallucinations beginning in early childhood. These hallucinations typically included figures she interpreted as ghosts, colors melting down walls, and imaginary friends named Maggie and Sev.^[5] One recurring hallucination was a man Geyser named "It,” whose body she described as the color of smoke and ink. She would perceive him as standing behind her in mirrors or shifting around corners.^[5]

After Geyser's arrest, her mother, Angie Geyser, described her as becoming "floridly psychotic." Correctional officers reported Geyser frequently talking to herself, pretending to be a cat, and keeping ants as pets. She reported seeing unicorns and believed she was having ongoing conversations with Slender Man and other fictional characters, such as Severus Snape.^[12]^[5]

In the fall of 2014, Geyser was relocated to the Winnebago Mental Health Institute to determine if she was competent to stand trial.^[5] On October 22, 2014, Geyser was diagnosed with early-onset childhood schizophrenia.^[5]

Geyser's treatment for schizophrenia was erratic and inadequate for nineteen months, which is believed to have exacerbated her cyclic regressions into psychosis and reduced her ability to recognize delusions against reality.^[12] In December 2015, Geyser began a consistent, long-term regimen of antipsychotic medication, which enabled her to understand what she had done and display appropriate feelings related to her crime, such as guilt and remorse. On March 23, 2016, Geyser was returned to the county jail to await trial. Although she was appropriately medicated, Geyser's mental health deteriorated. Her deterioration was linked to stressors on her already fragile mental health that are typical to forced confinement and incarceration.^[5]

During trial, Geyser was committed to the Winnebago Mental Health Institute, where she was the youngest patient.^[13]

Court case and negotiations

Geyser was charged with attempted first-degree homicide, a Class A felony, and Weier was charged with attempted second-degree homicide, a Class B felony.^[14]^[15] Due to the nature of the offenses, both Weier and Geyser were waived out of juvenile court to be tried as adults.^[16]

In 2017, Weier pleaded guilty to being a party to attempted second-degree homicide.^[17] A jury then found her "not guilty by mental disease or defect."^[18]^[19] Geyser accepted a plea offer that stipulated she would not undergo a trial if she pleaded guilty and agreed to further evaluation by psychiatrists to determine appropriate duration of commitment to a forensic psychiatric hospital.^[20] She later pleaded guilty as arranged by the plea offer, but was found not guilty by reason of mental disease or defect due to a final diagnosis of schizophrenia by court-appointed psychiatrists.^[21]^[22]

Weier was sentenced to 25 years to life, an indeterminate sentence requiring at least three years confinement and involuntary treatment in a state forensic psychiatric institute, followed by communal supervision until age 37.^[23]^[24]

Geyser was given the maximum sentence, 40 years to life, an indeterminate sentence requiring at least three years confinement in addition to involuntary treatment in a state forensic psychiatric institute until complete resolution of symptoms or until age 53, whichever may happen first. If released, she will remain under communal supervision and undergo periodic reevaluations intended to identify need for reinstitution and/or further treatment as required by the sentence imposed.^[13]^[25]

At a hearing on March 10, 2021, Weier, who was then 19 years old, submitted a letter to the court stating that she was "sorry and deeply regretful for the agony, pain, and fear I have caused," not just to Leutner, but to "my community as well." Weier stated that, "I hate my actions from May 31, 2014, but through countless hours of therapy, I no longer hate myself for them." On July 1, 2021, Waukesha County Judge Michael Bohren ordered Weier released from the Winnebago Mental Health Institute, gave state officials sixty days to draft a conditional release plan, and required that Weier be assigned Wisconsin Department of Health Services case managers to supervise her progress until she is 37 years old, the length of her commitment.^[26]

On September 13, 2021, Weier was released with multiple stipulations, including 24-hour GPS monitoring that required her to request permission before leaving Waukesha County. On September 11, 2023, the GPS stipulation was removed.^[27] Weier's Internet use is restricted and monitored. As part of her supervised release, she is not allowed to use any form of social media. Weier is required to take court mandated psychiatric medication and is escorted to regular counseling sessions by a case worker. She is required to live with her father while under supervision of the court.^[28]

In 2020, an appeals court rejected Geyser's petition to be retried as a juvenile. Her attorney, Matthew Pinix, argued that she should have been charged with attempted second-degree intentional homicide rather than first-degree, and argued that Geyser gave statements to investigators before being read her Miranda rights.^[29] He petitioned the Supreme Court of Wisconsin to review the ruling.^[30] In early 2021, the Wisconsin Supreme Court declined to hear the appeal.^[31]

In January 2024, Geyser petitioned the court for release, two years after withdrawing a petition in 2022 two months after filing.^[32] A judge denied this request for release at a hearing in April 2024.^[33]

Aftermath

After the attack, the Creepypasta Wiki, which houses the bulk of Slender Man lore, was blocked throughout the Waukesha School District.^[35] On June 5, 2014, Slender Man creator Eric Knudsen released a statement of condolence: "I am deeply saddened by the tragedy in Wisconsin and my heart goes out to the families of those affected by this terrible act."^[36]

Sloshedtrain, a former administrator of the Creepypasta Wiki,^[37] stated that the stabbing was an isolated incident that did not accurately represent the creepypasta community. He also argued that the Creepypasta Wiki is a literary website and that its community of creators and administrators do not condone murder or satanic rituals.^[38]^[39]

Members of the creepypasta community held a 24-hour live stream on YouTube June 13–14, 2014, to raise money for Leutner (whose name had not then been released). Joe Jozwowski, an administrator on a creepypasta website, said the purpose of the stream was to show that members of the community care for the victim and do not condone real-world violence.^[40]

Governor Scott Walker issued a proclamation declaring Wednesday, August 13, 2014, "Purple Hearts for Healing Day", and encouraged the people of Wisconsin to wear purple to honor the victim of the stabbing. He also praised the "strength and determination" exhibited by the victim during her recovery.^[41]

On August 29, 2014, the city of Madison, Wisconsin, held a one-day bratwurst festival to honor Leutner. Hot dogs and bratwurst were sold to raise money towards her medical costs. The event was run by over 250 volunteers and raised over $70,000.^[11]

On October 24, 2019, survivor Payton Leutner, then 17 years old, spoke publicly about her experience for the first time to ABC's 20/20. She discussed her scars, saying, "I don't think much of them. They will probably go away and fade eventually." She described how she met Geyser in fourth grade and became her friend because Geyser was alone a lot and Leutner wanted her to feel less alone. She also reported how Weier, who Geyser introduced to Leutner, had seemed jealous of the friendship between her and Geyser. When asked what she would say if she ever saw Geyser again, Leutner replied she would "thank" her because the attack inspired Leutner to pursue a career in medicine.^[42]

In September 2021, after Weier's release, it was reported that Leutner no longer lived in Waukesha County and was attending an undisclosed college as a sophomore student.^[43]

Debate on the effect of the Internet on children

The stabbing generated extensive public debate about the role of the Internet in society and its effect on children.^[44] Waukesha Police Chief Russell P. Jack argued that the stabbing "should be a wake-up call for all parents" because although the Internet "is full of information and wonderful sites that teach and entertain, it can also be full of dark and wicked things."^[4] John Egelhof, a retired agent of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, argued that the Internet has become a "black hole" that risks exposing children to a more sinister world.^[45] Egelhof suggested that parents should monitor their children's Internet use and educate them on the differences between right and wrong.^[45] Shira Chess, an assistant professor of mass media arts at the University of Georgia, described creepypasta as no more dangerous than stories about vampires or zombies. She argued that creepypasta websites are beneficial as creative communities that provide feedback and help participants become better writers.^[37]

In popular culture

A documentary film on the incident called Beware the Slenderman was released by HBO Films in March 2016, and was broadcast on HBO on January 23, 2017.^[46] A season 16 episode of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, titled "Glasgowman's Wrath,” is loosely based on the event.^[47] The Criminal Minds episode "The Tall Man" (Episode 14.05, airdate October 31, 2018) was also inspired by this story.^[48]

On October 14, 2018, a movie inspired by the Slender Man stabbing, called Terror in the Woods, aired on Lifetime. The film stars Ella West Jerrier, Sophia Grace McCarthy, Skylar Morgan Jones, Angela Kinsey, Drew Powell, and Carrie Hood. Christina Ricci serves as the executive producer of the film.^[49]^[50]

On March 31, 2019, another movie inspired by the Slender Man stabbing titled Mercy Black, starring Daniella Pineda, was released on Netflix. Directed by Owen Egerton and produced by Blumhouse Productions, it tells the story of two girls with pre-schizophrenia who attempt to murder their friend, believing that a spirit named Mercy Black will offer them a gift in return. Later, the protagonist is released from psychiatric care and must confront the real and paranormal consequences of her actions.

The 2024 novel In A Dark Mirror by Kat Davis is heavily based on the case, with only minor details changed.

One notable work is the book Slender Man: Online Obsession, Mental Illness, and the Violent Crime of Two Midwestern Girls by author and journalist Kathleen Hale. Using archive research and interviews with key figures, Hale explores cultural, historical, and biographical factors in order to contextualize the crime and subsequent legal proceedings and sentencing. She delves into the online community that created the myth of Slender Man, as well as the psychiatric history of Geyser, which is significant to the case. The book has been praised as the first accurate account of the stabbing and was nominated for an Edgar Award ^[51]