https://apnews.com/article/morgan-geyser-slender-man-stabbing-release-24cd776824b4c0e4b4a3346d936f5329?utm_source=copy&utm_medium=share posted:

A Wisconsin woman who at age 12 stabbed her sixth grade classmate nearly to death to please online horror character Slender Man will be released from a psychiatric hospital, a judge ordered Thursday after a trio of experts testified that she has made considerable progress battling mental illness.

Morgan Geyser has spent nearly seven years at the Winnebago Mental Health Institute. She has petitioned Waukesha County Circuit Judge Michael Bohren, who committed her, for release four times since June 2022. She withdrew her first two petitions. Bohren denied her third request this past April, finding she still presented a threat to the public.

Geyser, now 22 years old, filed her latest petition in October. Bohren decided to grant her release after a day-long hearing Thursday, finding that she had maximized her treatment options at the facility and is no longer a safety risk. He ordered the state Department of Health Services to set up a plan to house her in a group home and supervise her for his consideration at a hearing within 60 days.

The judge said that her crime was a “brutal, terrible offense” but Geyser has since grown up and to be truly rehabilitated she must exist as part of society.

“She’s done what she’s supposed to do,” Bohren said. “She appears to have a good attitude.”

Geyser and Anissa Weier were 12 years old in 2014 when they lured their classmate, Payton Leutner, to a Waukesha park after a sleepover. Geyser stabbed Leutner 19 times while Weier egged her on. Leutner barely survived.

The girls later told investigators that they attacked Leutner to earn the right to be Slender Man’s servants and they feared he would harm their families if they didn’t follow through.

Geyser pleaded guilty to attempted first-degree intentional homicide and was sent to the psychiatric institute due to mental illness in 2018.

Weier pleaded guilty to attempted second-degree intentional homicide. She was also sent to the psychiatric center but was granted release in 2021 to live with her father and was ordered to wear a GPS monitor.

Three psychologists who have been working with Geyser since she was committed to the institute testified at Thursday’s hearing that she’s made impressive progress in just the last six months and should be released.

Dr. Brooke Lundbohm testified that Winnebago staff weaned Geyser off her anti-psychotic medications by early 2023 and she’s suffered no symptoms since then.

Dr. Deborah Collins said Geyser is always at risk of reoffending simply because she almost killed someone but she has worked on her coping skills, improved her emotional control and retreats into fantasy less frequently. Collins added that Geyser told her that she hates what she did to Leutner and can’t forgive herself.

Dr. Ken Robbins told the judge that she could become dangerous if she remained confined at Winnebago and lost hope.

“The longer she’s there, at this point, the harder it’s going to be to re-integrate,” Robbins said.

Waukesha County Assistant District Attorney Ted Szczupakiewicz argued that Geyser couldn’t be trusted, noting that she claimed during evaluations last year that she faked her delusions about Slender Man and actually attacked Leutner as a way of escaping her abusive father. He hinted that was a ploy to make the release more likely.

The judge shrugged that off, saying it’s not unusual for mental illness diagnoses to evolve.

quote:

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]

Thesaurus posted:

What burden of the guilt does SA play in all of this?

bossy lady posted:

None. A general lack of taking mental healthcare seriously in the US is mostly to blame.

Cubone posted:

we've had our jokes, within the comfortable distance of abstraction, but of course when you consider the actual human element of it it's mostly just really sad. she was clearly not well and she did something terrible and will have to live with it for the rest of her life. if she's shown real remorse, it's tough, but I do think she deserves a second chance to impress slenderman

Croccers posted:

Is she going to be ready for what the internet is today?

Worf posted:

lol at locking up a 12 year old for 7 years in America of all places

Thesaurus posted:

After my post, I read this long essay. It's a good read if you want to feel bad for everyone involved and hate the justice and mental health system

https://hazlitt.net/longreads/living-slenderman

Escape From Noise posted:

Is Eric Knudsen (creator of Slenderman) a Goon?

Also I hope she got the help she needed.

MrQwerty posted:

slenderman is from a gbs thread where goons were scaring themselves with photoshops

Wikipedia posted:

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."

Thesaurus posted:

In that long essay I just posted it discusses how a shithead judge ordered her held without access to psychiatric medicines for a long time and it almost killed her.

Escape From Noise posted:

Is Eric Knudsen (creator of Slenderman) a Goon?

Also I hope she got the help she needed.

quote:

The Slender Man was created on June 10, 2009, on a thread in the Something Awful Internet forum.[8][9][10] The thread was a Photoshop contest in which users were challenged to "create paranormal images."[11][12] Forum poster Eric Knudsen, under the pseudonym "Victor Surge",[13] contributed two black-and-white images of groups of children to which he added a tall, thin, spectral figure wearing a black suit.[14][15]

Thesaurus posted:

CEOofFART posted:

so when will they be made a mod

Funky See Funky Do posted:

I'm pretty sure I've seen the interview footage for this and they interrogated and 11yo girl with schizophrenia (I think) without her parents present. There was something outrageous improper about it. I'm glad they got out.

Funky See Funky Do posted:

I'm pretty sure I've seen the interview footage for this and they interrogated and 11yo girl with schizophrenia (I think) without her parents present. There was something outrageous improper about it. I'm glad they got out.

Panic! At The Tesco posted:

oh poo poo slenderman 2025

dr_rat posted:

Yeah, anyway so even those his names still "slenderman" um to be poliet he's put on a few kilo's since 2009. You know covid, just stayed at home eating yada yada. Anyway so yeah just don't mention to him that he may not er exactly be the slender'est any more.