A Wisconsin woman, Morgan Geyser, who was involved in a notorious 2014 case where she nearly killed a classmate to appease the fictional character known as Slender Man, has been ordered back to a psychiatric hospital. This decision follows her escape from a group home last month. On November 22, 2023, Waukesha County Circuit Judge K. Scott Wagner approved a request from the Wisconsin Department of Health Services to revoke Geyser’s release privileges.
During a brief court hearing, Geyser, now 23 years old, indicated through her attorney, Tony Cotton, that she would not contest the revocation. Judge Wagner quickly granted the state’s request after hearing the circumstances of Geyser’s escape. Cotton did not respond to requests for further comment following the hearing.
In 2014, Geyser and her friend Anissa Weier lured their classmate, Payton Leutner, to a park in Waukesha, where Geyser stabbed her 19 times while Weier encouraged the attack. A passing bicyclist discovered Leutner, who survived the attack despite severe injuries. At that time, all three girls were just 12 years old. Geyser and Weier later explained to investigators that they believed the assault would impress Slender Man, hoping he would make them his servants and spare their families from harm.
Following their actions, both Geyser and Weier were committed to the Winnebago Mental Health Institute. Geyser received a 40-year commitment, while Weier was given 25 years. Weier earned conditional release in 2021, but Geyser’s conditional release was granted only this past September, despite warnings from state officials regarding her trustworthiness.
Geyser was placed in a group home in Madison, Wisconsin. On November 22, she cut off her GPS monitor and fled the facility with a 43-year-old companion. Authorities apprehended both individuals the following day at a truck stop outside Chicago, Illinois, approximately 170 miles (274 kilometers) south of Madison.
The companion, speaking to WKOW-TV, revealed that they had developed a friendship through church and had been seeing each other daily for the past month. Geyser reportedly chose to escape out of fear that the group home would prevent their continued contact.
The Slender Man character emerged online in 2009, created by Eric Knudsen as a mysterious figure inserted into everyday images of children. The character gained notoriety, inspiring various forms of media, including video games, online stories, and a 2018 film. The ongoing saga surrounding Geyser and Weier continues to raise discussions about mental health, juvenile justice, and the impact of fictional narratives on real-life behavior.
