OSHKOSH, WI – Wisconsin woman Morgan Geyser, now 21 years old, had notoriously attacked a classmate in 2014 to appease the internet horror character “Slender Man.” On Thursday, she had her early release petition from a psychiatric hospital quashed by a local judge.
Geyser was sentenced to a 40-year commitment in Winnebago Mental Health Institute in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, after she pled guilty to attempted first-degree intentional homicide in the stabbing attack on Payton Leutner. The two 12-year-olds, Geyser and Anissa Weier, lured unsuspecting Leutner to a park after a sleepover. Leutner miraculously survived 19 stab wounds inflicted by the pair.
The girls testified that they believed that pleasing the fictional Slender Man would shield their families from harm. Weier, similarly found guilty, was released in 2021 to her father, under GPS monitoring.
Despite medical experts testifying that Geyser is not a threat to the public, Judge Michael Bohren denied her release. Bohren cited significant risk to herself and others as the basis for his ruling, aligning with Wisconsin law.
In response, Geyser’s attorney, Tony Cotton, stated that she can petition for release again in six months. Cotton maintains Geyser believes her actions were driven by a trauma-induced mental disorder rather than schizophrenia.