Slender Man knife girl pleads insanity
A GIRL of 14 charged with attempting to murder a classmate in an act of devotion to Slender Man, a fictional horror character, has pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity.
Morgan Geyser was 12 when she and a friend allegedly attacked another girl of the same age, after months of planning, as a tribute to the online paranormal character.
The details of the so-called Slender Man stabbing caused shock and alarm around the world – Morgan and Anissa Weier are accused of luring their alleged victim into woods in their home town in Wisconsin before stabbing her 19 times with a kitchen knife.
The victim, Payton Leutner, was allegedly left to die but was able to crawl out to the road where she was found bleeding from wounds in her arms, legs and torso.
“If the knife had gone the width of a human hair further, she wouldn’t have lived,” Dr John Keleman, who operated on Payton, said at the time.
Payton’s father said she was “scared for her life” as she lay in hospital, afraid Morgan Geyser is led into court, one of two girls accused of trying to kill a 12year-old classmate two years ago, top right, to please Slender Man, a horror character that her again”.
Despite their ages, Morgan and Anissa were charged as adults with attempted murder. Anissa pleaded not guilty last year. Following Morgan’s insanity plea, a judge has ordered that she be examined by two doctors. Her lawyers will apparently argue that her belief in and dedication to Slender Man are indications of mental illness.
Investigators say Morgan and Anissa told them they hoped to impress the shadowy figure and become his “proxies” by committing murder.
Slender Man was invented by Eric Knudsen in 2009 in an online competition, and has been the subject of horror stories and doctored images that show his narrow, suited frame roaming the wilderness or hovering near children.
Police say that Morgan and Anissa told them they discovered the character on Creepypasta, a forum where users share dark and frightening stories.
The girls reportedly believed they had to commit murder to prove Slender Man’s existence to sceptics.
Russell Jack, the local chief of police, said the alleged crime should be “a wake-up call for all parents”.
“The internet has changed the way we live. It is full of information and wonderful sites that teach and entertain. The internet can also be full of dark and wicked things,” he said at the time of the attack.
A judge concluded last year that both Morgan and Anissa were competent to stand trial. The next court hearing is in October. attackers would “find her