Slender Man Stabbing: Where Are Anissa Weier and Morgan Geyser 10 Years After Attack?

At 12 years old, Morgan Geyser and Anissa Weir stabbed classmate Payton Leutner 19 times on May 31, 2014

Morgan Geyser and Anissa Weier were 12 years old when they stabbed their close friend 19 times in an effort to please the mythical horror figure Slender Man (also called Slenderman).

The Slender Man character is believed to have originated in an illustration from 2009 of a tall, thin man with tentacle-like arms and abilities including mind control and teleportation. Slender Man went viral on Creepypasta sites, which share horror stories.

Together, Weier and Geyser grew obsessed with Slender Man and plotted to kill their classmate, Payton Leutner, in an effort to become "proxies" for the character, who they believed was real. Luring Leutner into the woods on May 31, 2014, Weier and Geyser stabbed Leutner 19 times before leaving her for dead — but she survived. The case inspired an HBO documentary and the 2018 feature film Slender Man starring Joey King.

Here's everything to know about the Slender Man stabbing and what happened to Anissa Weier and Morgan Geyser — and survivor Payton Leutner — in the decade since.

Who are Anissa Weier and Morgan Geyser?

Geyser, Weier and Leutner were all students at Horning Middle School in the Milwaukee suburb of Waukesha, Wis.

Leutner and Geyser had actually become friends first. In an episode of 20/20, Leutner recalled that she befriended Geyser after seeing her eat alone at lunch. She also described her former friend as funny and “a little lonely.”

However, Leutner said their relationship changed after Geyser befriended Weier in sixth grade in 2014. Weier and Geyser grew obsessed with Slender Man, leading Leutner to want to distance herself from Geyser.

"I thought it was odd. It kind of frightened me a little bit, but I went along with it," Leutner ABC anchor David Muir on 20/20 in 2019. "I was supportive because I thought that’s what she liked."

However, in time, Leutner started considering ending her friendship with Geyser. "I saw the change from fifth to sixth grade when she met Anissa," she added. "That's when I was really wanting to get out of that friendship."

According to The New York Times, Geyser and Weier believed that Slender Man was real and that he lived in the woods of northern Wisconsin.

What did Anissa Weier and Morgan Geyser do?

Over the course of several months, Geyser and Weier devised a plan to murder Leutner to try to become "proxies" for the fictional horror character, The New York Times reported. Using code words like "cracker" for knife and "camping trip" for the woods where they believed Slender Man resided, in February 2014, Weier and Geyser chose May 31 of that year for the attempted slaying.

According to police, Weier and Geyser lured Leutner into a Wisconsin park and took turns encouraging one another to stab Leutner, with Geyser actually stabbing her 19 times while Weier watched. They then left Leutner for dead, but Leutner survived. Leutner crawled to a nearby bike path, where a passerby called 911 and stayed with her until paramedics arrived.

Local police found Weier and Geyser — who were both 12 at the time — walking on the side of the road miles away from the crime scene and picked the girls up. They reportedly were nonchalant when they informed investigators that they killed their friend to appease Slender Man, who they thought would kill them or their families if they didn't kill Leutner. Geyser, covered in blood, told police, "I might as well just say it. We were trying to kill her."

What was Anissa Weier's sentence?

Geyser and Weier were each charged with first-degree intentional homicide. Despite their age, they were tried as adults.

In August 2017, Weier pleaded guilty to second-degree attempted homicide as a party to a crime with the use of a deadly weapon. The following month, a jury ruled that Weier was mentally ill at the time of the murder attempt and found her not guilty by reason of mental disease or defect.

Per her plea agreement, Weier was sentenced to a maximum of 25 years in a psychiatric facility. She was mandated to spend at least three years in a psychiatric hospital before she could apply for supervised release, which would be part of the commitment order. She was also credited for the three years that she served in a juvenile detention facility.

What was Morgan Geyser's sentence?

Geyser’s attorneys argued in court documents that she suffered from schizophrenia and psychotic spectrum disorder, which made her prone to delusions and paranoid beliefs. She pleaded guilty in October 2017, sobbing in court, and was committed to a mental hospital.

Despite her plea deal, she was found not guilty by reason of mental disease or disorder. She was sentenced to 40 years in a psychiatric hospital, the Associated Press reported, which Judge Michael Bohren said was because it was "an issue of public protection."

Where is the Slender Man stabbing survivor Payton Leutner now?

Leutner was hospitalized for 10 days after the attack, and in the following months had as many as eight medical appointments per week during her recovery. She returned to Horning Middle School for seventh grade in September 2014. A representative for the Leutner family said that Leutner excelled academically, participated in school music programs and volunteered at an animal shelter as she had before Weier and Geyser's attack. She and her family each sought counseling to cope with the trauma of the stabbing.

In October 2019, Leutner spoke publicly for the first time about the Slender Man stabbing, telling Muir in a 20/20 interview that she still slept with broken scissors under her pillow five years after the attack. She also revealed that she was actually somewhat grateful for what had happened to her.

"Just because of what she did, I have the life I have now," Leutner said. "I really, really like it and I have a plan. I didn't have a plan when I was 12, and now, I do because of everything that I went through. I wouldn't think that someone who went through what I did would ever say that, but that’s truly how I feel. Without the whole situation, I wouldn't be who I am."

Where are Anissa Weier and Morgan Geyser now?

After applying for conditional release in March 2021, then 19-year-old Weier was released from Winnebago Mental Health Institute in Oshkosh, Wis., on Sept. 13, 2021. She spent more than four years in inpatient psychiatric treatment. She must reside with her father and isn't permitted to access the Internet outside of his home. The Department of Corrections monitors her Internet use and activity.

Weier is also subject to 24/7 GPS tracking and is mandated to continue psychiatric treatment.

On April 21, 2024, Judge Bohren denied Geyser's petition for early release from Winnebago Mental Health Institute after two court-appointed psychologists recommended she remain in inpatient psychiatric care. One of the psychologists said that Geyser claimed in a 2022 evaluation she was "faking" her psychotic symptoms in an effort to avoid being released to her father's care, alleging he abused her.

If you or someone you know need mental health help, text "STRENGTH" to the Crisis Text Line at 741-741 to be connected to a certified crisis counselor.

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