One of two Wisconsin girls charged with stabbing a classmate to impress horror character Slender Man has reached a plea deal in order to avoid trial.
The deal calls for doctors to evaluate 15-year-old Morgan Geyser and report to a judge to determine how long she should remain in a state mental hospital.
Geyser’s co-defendant, Anissa Weier, faces at least three years in a mental hospital after a jury this month determined she was mentally ill at the time of the 2014 attack on classmate Payton Leutner.
All three girls were 12 years old at the time.
Morgan Geyser, 15 (pictured in court, Friday), one of two Wisconsin girls involved in the infamous Slender Man stabbing will plead guilty in a deal that calls for her to avoid prison time and instead receive treatment for mental illness
A judge will determine how long Williams (pictured in court, Friday) should remain in a state mental hospital, where she has been for the last 18 months
Geyser’s co-defendant, Anissa Weier (pictured, center, in court, February 2017), faces at least three years in a mental hospital after a jury this month determined she was mentally ill at the time of the 2014 attack on classmate Payton Leutner
Geyser appeared with one of her attorneys, Donna Kuchler, who later said her client has ‘made incredible strides’ since beginning institutionalized treatment, where she has been receiving for the last 18 months.
‘It’s been a tragic experience for everyone,’ Kuchler said.
‘Our hearts go out to the victim and her family. And we’re very grateful that the district attorney’s office gave this case the considering it deserves.’
Weier and Geyser lured Leutner into the woods at a park in Waukesha, a Milwaukee suburb. Geyser stabbed Leutner 19 times while Weier urged her on, according to investigators.
Leutner survived after she crawled out of the woods to a path where a passing bicyclist found her.
Both Weier and Geyser told detectives they felt they had to kill Leutner to become Slender Man’s ‘proxies’, or servants, and protect their families from him.
The girls were each charged with attempted first-degree intentional homicide, which carries a possible sentence of up to 65 years in prison.
Geyser and Weirer lured Leutner (left, then, and right, now) into the woods at a park in Waukesha, a Milwaukee suburb. Geyser stabbed Leutner 19 times while Weier urged her on, according to investigators
Geyser (left) and Weier (right) told detectives they felt they had to kill Leutner to become Slender Man’s servants and protect their families from him. The girls were each charged with attempted first-degree intentional homicide, which carries a possible sentence of up to 65 years in prison
Unlike Weier, Geyser (pictured in court, November 2016) will plead guilty to the original charge from prosecutors. But she won’t face a sentencing phase where attorneys would argue that she was mentally ill when the crime occurred and shouldn’t face prison time
Earlier this year a spokesperson for Lautner’s family issued a statement to People magazine saying that the now 15-year-old is thriving as a high school freshman.
‘Today, Payton is a strong young woman who is excelling in school and doing many things that a teenager would do with her family and friends,’ the spokesperson said.
Last month, Weier pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of attempted second-degree homicide, just weeks before her trial was set to begin. Following the trial, the jury accepted her insanity plea, finding that she was not legally responsible.
Unlike Weier, Geyser will plead guilty to the original charge from prosecutors. But she won’t face a sentencing phase where attorneys would argue that she was mentally ill when the crime occurred and shouldn’t face prison time.
Geyser, who was diagnosed with early onset-schizophrenia in 2014, is heavily medicated, though ‘more lucid with the medication than she ever was’, prior to her diagnosis, her attorneys say.
During a hearing in August, Weier said that she didn’t want to harm Leutner and that the stabbing plot was Geyser’s idea. She said she participated because she was afraid of what would happen if she didn’t.
‘I believed that if I didn’t go through with it, Slender Man would come and attack and kill myself, my friends and my family. Those I cared about the most,’ she said.
Slender Man started with an online post in 2009, as a mysterious specter whose image people edit into everyday scenes of children at play.
He is typically depicted as a spidery figure in a black suit with a featureless white face. He was regarded by his devotees as alternately a sinister force and an avenging angel.
Geyser, who was diagnosed with early onset-schizophrenia in 2014, is heavily medicated, though ‘more lucid with the medication than she ever was’, prior to her diagnosis, her attorneys say
Slender Man (pictured) started with an online post in 2009, as a mysterious specter whose image people edit into everyday scenes of children at play. He is typically depicted as a spidery figure in a black suit with a featureless white face