True Crime: The Slenderman Case

WARNING: This case includes violent acts and young children, discretion is advised

On May 31, 2014, in Waukesha, Wisconsin, 12-year-olds Anissa Weier and Morgan Geyser (shown below) were arrested for the attempted murder of Payton Leutner

The three girls were all once friends. However, Anissa and Morgan gained a new interest, the Slenderman. Slenderman is a fictional character that came from internet horror stories, also known as Creepypasta. Although the two girls were invested in this character, Payton felt that Slenderman was scary. This split in interest left Payton feeling left out. On Morgan’s 12th birthday, the three girls decided to have a sleepover. When it came to midnight, Anissa said she wanted to sleep, which Payton thought was unusual because the girls planned to stay up all night. Payton however convinced the two girls to stay up for as long as they could. The next day, Payton woke up but she couldn’t find Anissa or Morgan so she went downstairs. In the kitchen she found the two girls looking at slender man stories on their computer. Payton found it strange but decided to ignore it. Later in the day, Morgan suggested that they go to the park and play hide and seek. Morgan’s mother allowed them to go alone because she felt that they were old enough to walk around safely. At the park, the girls decided that Morgan would be the seeker. When Anissa and Payton went to hide, Anissa tricked Payton into laying on the ground. Morgan soon found the girls and without hesitation, stabbed Payton 19 times. It wasn’t clear if Anissa held Payton down or was watching. After the girls were done, they left Payton to die. However, Payton was still alive. She was able to get out of the park despite her severe injuries and was able to get help from a cyclist who spotted her. Payton was then rushed to the hospital to treat her wounds. In the hospital, police were only able to communicate with Payton through a whiteboard. When asked about who caused her injuries, Payton wrote on the whiteboard Morgan and Anissa’s names. At this point though, Anissa and Morgan were already arrested. The girls were spotted 5 miles away from the park covered in blood by the police. The police obviously suspected that something was wrong and pulled over to talk to the girls. When talking, police noticed that Anissa seemed bothered and quite shaken up. However, it didn't take long for the police to learn the truth. The police asked what was in the girls’ pockets when they pulled out a bloody knife. Anissa then confessed that if they didn't kill their friend Payton, their family would be killed instead by slenderman. Though police were confused about this slenderman character, they were shocked to find that these two young girls could do something so horrific. This was when the girls were arrested and pulled into the police station. Anissa and Morgan were charged with 1st and 2nd-degree murder and were found guilty. Later on, both girls went to a psychiatric hospital since Morgan was diagnosed with schizophrenia and Anissa has a personality disorder. The three girls are now 19. Payton is now living a healthy life. As for Morgan, she is still in an unnamed mental hospital. Anissa on the other hand has been granted conditional release as of September 13th.