Judge upholds 'Slender Man' attacker's release from mental health facility

A judge denied a motion to stop the release of a Wisconsin woman from a mental health facility more than a decade after she conspired to stab a classmate to please fictional horror character “Slender Man."

Morgan Geyser, 22, was 12-years-old when she and Anissa Weier lured classmate Payton Leutner to a park for the violent attack, convinced it would keep the fictional boogeyman from harming their families. She has spent seven years at the Winnebago Mental Health Institute, but was cleared for release into a group home earlier this year.

Three medical experts testified in January that Geyser was no longer a threat to the public following considerable progress. Her treatment would continue while she was under supervision of the group home.

Morgan Geyser appears in a Waukesha County courtroom on Jan. 9 in Waukesha, Wis.Morry Gash / AP

Waukesha County Circuit Judge Michael Bohren ruled that Geyser's release would continue as planned.

Bohren said that under the conditional release, Geyser will still be placed under "substantial supervision," which he said is "in many ways more strict from the rules and restrictions on the person than they would be when she was in the institution from the standpoint of freedom within the confines of the institution."

Bohren said "there is no reason to stop the process on conditional release" and said they would "go forward with the conditional release program."

In making his decision, the judge said that the state did not meet its burden of proof to block the release, and that he weighed on testimony from Geyser's doctors who knew her and said that what they saw in the state's petition to block her release did not change their views on her.

Bohren said the testimony of a therapist who worked at the institution where Geyser stayed “satisfied” him.

Geyser allowed her therapist to testify about their confidential conversations — who said she had no concerns about Geyser's attitude in therapy, described Geyser as being extremely open when doing therapy, and said she did not have any concerns about Geyser’s behavior.

Bohren also noted that he saw "no hidden agenda" or evidence of lying or deception on Geyser's part. He said he was satisfied with her communication with others in the institution and that it was “truthful and accurate,” and that she responded well to questions when asked.

The motion to stop Geyser's release from the facility focused on two points of contention: a book that contained dark themes that Geyser read and that she sent a man artwork of a violent nature while under care at the Winnebago Mental Health Institute. Prosecutor Abbey Nickolie told the judge that the man had been "sexually aroused" by Geyser's crime.

Anthony Cotton, her attorney, told the judge that Geyser willfully disclosed both the book and contact with the man to the team determining her conditional release. He also said that Geyser asked for a no-contact order with the man.

Bohren addressed the book in court Thursday, and noted that the sole testimony about the nature of the book was from a doctor who called it "humorous," but noted he doesn't know the accuracy of the doctor's assertion.

"He basically put the book in context," Bohren said. "Nobody challenged that context."

Regarding the man, Bohren said it appeared Geyser stopped contact with him once she realized what he was doing.

He said, "there's nothing in the record that shows that she did anything to encourage the person besides sending some him some pictures."

"I don't find that in and of itself a reason to find she's at risk for herself or at risk to harm the community in a conditional release plan," he said. Just because she participated in the contact, "that doesn't mean she encouraged it."

Geyser was mentally ill in the aftermath of the stabbing and in 2017 Geyser agreed to plead guilty to attempted first-degree intentional homicide. She was sentenced to a maximum of 40 years at a mental hospital.

Weier did not stab Leutner but prosecutors said that she egged Geyser on in attacking the young girl. She was sentenced to 25 years in a mental hospital but was released in 2021 after just four years at Winnebago Mental Health Institute.

A hearing is set for March 21 at 10:30 a.m. ET to go over Geyser's conditional release plan.