Woman to be Released from Mental Hospital After Over a Decade

A woman from Wisconsin is set to leave a mental health facility after spending more than seven years there, following a judge’s approval of her conditional release plan. Morgan Geyser, now 22, was hospitalized after she nearly killed a classmate in 2014 by stabbing her 19 times. The attack was motivated by their fascination with the fictional horror character Slender Man.

Geyser was found guilty of attempted first-degree intentional homicide in 2017, claiming she was mentally ill at the time. She was committed to a psychiatric hospital for up to 40 years. Recently, she made significant progress in managing her mental health, leading a judge to approve her release under specific conditions. However, authorities expressed concern when they discovered she had concealed reading a novel about murder and organ trafficking and had communicated with a collector of murder memorabilia, sending him disturbing sketches and postcards.

The case also involves her relationship with her co-defendant, Anissa Weier, who pleaded guilty to a related charge and was released in 2021 under supervision, agreeing to live with her father and wear a GPS tracker. The release of Geyser followed a review after initial objections from prosecutors, who were worried about her safety and the safety of others. The detailed plan and timeline for her discharge have not been disclosed publicly.

Geyser and Weier had planned to visit Slender Man’s alleged mansion in Wisconsin after their attack, believing that doing so would earn them the right to be his servants. The incident shocked the community and garnered widespread media attention, partly because of the girls’ obsession with the mythical Slender Man, a figure created online in 2009, described as a tall, slender, faceless entity in a black suit. Slender Man has since become a popular figure in horror stories, video games, and films.