Latest news with #Geyser
Toronto Sun
17-07-2025
- Toronto Sun
Judge OKs release plan for woman who stabbed a classmate to please Slender Man
Published Jul 17, 2025 • 3 minute read Morgan Geyser appears in a Waukesha County courtroom, Jan. 9, 2025, in Waukesha, Wis. Photo by Morry Gash / AP A judge has approved a conditional release plan for a Wisconsin woman who nearly killed her classmate years ago to please the fictional horror character Slender Man. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. 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Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account Waukesha County Circuit Judge Scott Wagner signed off Thursday on the plan to release Morgan Geyser, now 22, from the Winnebago Mental Health Institute, a psychiatric hospital where she has spent the last seven years. In April, prosecutors objected to Geyser's original conditional release plan after the mother of the victim, Payton Leutner, expressed concern that Geyser's group home was located eight miles away from Leutner. The judge then ordered the Department of Health Services to draft a new plan, which was approved Thursday. Details of the plan were not shared in court. Geyser and her friend, Anissa Weier, lured Leutner to a Waukesha park after a sleepover in 2014. Geyser stabbed Leutner 19 times while Weier egged her on. All three girls were 12 years old at the time. Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Geyser and Weier fled after the attack but were arrested as they were walking on Interstate 94. They told investigators they attacked Leutner to earn the right to be Slender Man's servants and feared he would hurt their families if they didn't follow through. They had planned to walk to Slender Man's mansion in northern Wisconsin after the attack, they said. Leutner barely survived the attack. Geyser ultimately pleaded guilty to being a party to attempted first-degree intentional homicide in 2017 but claimed she wasn't responsible because she was mentally ill. Waukesha County Circuit Judge Michael Bohren committed her to a psychiatric hospital for 40 years in 2018, but the judge ruled in January she could be released after three experts testified she has made progress battling mental illness. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. State health officials argued in March that Geyser couldn't be trusted after learning that she hadn't told her therapists that she had read a novel about murder and black market organ sales. They also alleged that she had been communicating with a man who collects murder memorabilia and sent him her own sketch of a decapitated body and a postcard saying she wants to be intimate with him. Cotton countered that Geyser only read what the facility allowed, and staff knew she had been communicating with the collector. He added that she stopped talking to the man in 2024 after she discovered he was selling things she sent him. Bohren concluded that Geyser wasn't trying to hide anything and ordered state health officials to continue developing a release plan. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Wagner took over Geyser's release request after Bohren retired this past April. Weier pleaded guilty to being a party to attempted second-degree intentional homicide with a dangerous weapon in 2017, but like Geyser claimed she was mentally ill and not responsible for her actions. She was committed to 25 years in a mental hospital but was granted release in 2021 after agreeing to live with her father and to wear a GPS monitor. The case has drawn widespread attention in part because of the girls' fascination with the Slender Man character. Slender Man was created online by Eric Knudson in 2009 as a mysterious specter photo-edited into everyday images of children at play. He's typically depicted as a slim, spidery figure in a black suit with a featureless white face. He has grown into a popular boogeyman and has appeared in video games, online stories and a 2018 movie. Read More MMA Celebrity Sunshine Girls World Relationships
Axios
25-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Axios
Hollywood duo wants you to own your AI self
A new app launching today promises to let anyone digitally clone themselves in under three minutes. Why it matters: The startup, called 2wai (pronounced "two-way"), was co-founded by Disney Channel actor Calum Worthy and Hollywood producer Russell Geyser, and is designed to give entertainers — and everyone else — lifetime ownership over their AI avatars. The big picture: If the bad guys can now make dangerous deepfakes of anyone, Geyser and Worthy argue, why not create and control one yourself? How it works: 2wai calls its digital twins "HoloAvatars" and says they can have real-time "conversations" with anyone in over 40 languages. The startup is launching with an initial emphasis on entertainers, athletes and influencers first. In the next few weeks anyone will be able to use the software to create their own avatar, Geyser tells Axios. Between the lines: Worthy is an actor and environmentalist best known for his portrayal of Dez on the Disney Channel's "Austin & Ally." Geyser is a film producer and Hollywood investor. The avatars are lightweight enough to run on phones, which Worthy says was important to him because of his concerns about the environmental impact of AI. This also makes the avatars cheaper and more accessible. Reality check: This isn't the first time a startup has tried to help Hollywood stars control their own AI digital likeness. After Metaphysic's parody deep fakes of Tom Cruise went viral in 2021, the company officially launched an outfit dedicated to giving Hollywood professionals control over their digital twins. In April 2023, Metaphysic's CEO and co-founder Tom Graham filed to register a U.S. copyright for an AI version of himself. Digital clones have become popular lately with executives, using them to save time and give more people access to their brainpower. Investors are starting to notice. "Digital Mind" platform Delphi announced this week that they'd raised $16 million from Sequoia to "capture brilliance," claiming that the "minds that moved the world" are only "one question away," according to the company's sweeping promo video. Yes, but: Using digital avatars to scale ourselves can give people the illusion that humans are more accessible to other humans than they really are, Julie Carpenter, a human-AI interaction expert and research fellow at CalPoly, told Axios. She also questions the accuracy of chats with AI avatars and says LLM hallucinations make this a bad use case for the tech right now. "It's not really speaking for that person, and at any point it could be completely misinterpreting or making up its answers," Carpenter says. Worthy disagrees."The information you put into your avatar's brain is completely up to you," Worthy told Axios.
Yahoo
29-04-2025
- Yahoo
'Slender Man' stabber release hits roadblock after learning victim would live 8 miles away
One of the two teens convicted in the "Slender Man" stabbing case has had her release delayed once again after a judge found an issue with the proximity of her living quarters to the victim. It's been over a decade since Morgan Geyser, now 22, along with Anissa Waeier, nearly stabbed their sixth-grade friend, Payton Leutner, to death after telling police that a fictional character known as "Slender Man" instructed them to kill Leutner. Geyser appeared in court on Monday to finalize her conditional release, but the plan was diverted after prosecutors noted that her planned group home would only be 8 miles away from where Leutner now lives. "We have a large problem," Waukesha County Assistant District Attorney Ted Szczupakiewicz said, according to testimony shown on Court TV. "The entire state of Wisconsin, judge, and we have a plan that has her 8 miles away!" 'Slender Man' Stabber To Be Released As State Warns Of 'Red Flags' "The authors of the plan never consulted with the victim in this case," Szczupakiewicz continued. Read On The Fox News App Leutner's mother, Stacie, expressed that her family was "very concerned" about Geyser living in such close proximity, speaking via Zoom to the court. "What consideration has been given to Payton's rights and her needs for safety?" Stacie Leutner asked the court. "They made no effort to ascertain details of Payton's daily life that would be pertinent to this planning." SIGN UP TO GET True Crime Newsletter "Payton has worked incredibly hard to heal from the profound trauma she endured," Stacie Leutner continued. "She deserves the right to engage in everyday activities, such as grocery shopping or visiting the library, without the agonizing fear of encountering the individual who held her down and stabbed her 19 times when she was just 12 years old." Waukesha County Circuit Court Judge Michael Bohren shared his frustration that this was not discussed prior to the hearing and ordered officials to find a new group home for Geyser, giving them a 30-day deadline. Wisconsin Woman Charged In 'Slender Man' Stabbing Drops Request For Early Release From Mental Health Facility "This is what some people may refer to as a high-profile case where t's are to be crossed and i's are dotted to be sure all rights are protected," Bohren said. Geyser is scheduled to return to court for another release hearing in early June, marking the third time her release has been delayed. Geyser's defense team and the state's prosecuting attorney did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment. Follow The Fox True Crime Team On X Prosecutors said Geyser and Weier lured Leutner to a wooded area in Waukesha after a sleepover in May 2014. Geyser stabbed Leutner repeatedly as Weier urged her on, prosecutors said. Both Weier and Geyser told authorities they felt they had to kill Leutner to become Slender Man's "proxies," or servants, and protect their families from him. 'Slender Man' Case: Wisconsin Judge Orders Conditional Release For Woman Involved In Stabbing Leutner was left for dead but miraculously survived the attack after she crawled out of the woods and was found by a bicyclist. "Slender Man" started with an online post in 2009, as a mysterious specter whose image people edit into everyday scenes of children at play. He is typically depicted as a spidery figure in a black suit with a featureless white face. He was regarded by his devotees as alternately a sinister force and an avenging angel. In 2017, Geyser pleaded guilty to attempted first-degree intentional homicide in Leutner's attack but claimed she was not responsible due to her mental illness. She was sentenced in 2018 to a maximum of 40 years of state mental health supervision. GET REAL-TIME UPDATES DIRECTLY ON THE True Crime Hub Geyser has been at the Winnebago Mental Health Institute for nearly a decade, but was permitted to ask the court to consider her conditional release every six months. Despite the state's pleas to keep Geyser institutionalized, Bohren determined she was no longer a danger to society. Weier also pleaded guilty to being a party to attempted second-degree intentional homicide with a dangerous weapon and was sentenced to 25 years in a mental hospital. In 2021, she was released on the condition she must live with her father and wear a GPS monitor. Fox News Digital's Julia Bonavita and The Associated Press contributed to this article source: 'Slender Man' stabber release hits roadblock after learning victim would live 8 miles away
Fox News
29-04-2025
- Fox News
'Slender Man' stabber release hits roadblock after learning victim would live 8 miles away
One of the two teens convicted in the "Slender Man" stabbing case has had her release delayed once again after a judge found an issue with the proximity of her living quarters to the victim. It's been over a decade since Morgan Geyser, now 22, along with Anissa Waeier, nearly stabbed their sixth-grade friend, Payton Leutner, to death after telling police that a fictional character known as "Slender Man" instructed them to kill Leutner. Geyser appeared in court on Monday to finalize her conditional release, but the plan was diverted after prosecutors noted that her planned group home would only be 8 miles away from where Leutner now lives. "We have a large problem," Waukesha County Assistant District Attorney Ted Szczupakiewicz said, according to testimony shown on Court TV. "The entire state of Wisconsin, judge, and we have a plan that has her 8 miles away!" "The authors of the plan never consulted with the victim in this case," Szczupakiewicz continued. Leutner's mother, Stacie, expressed that her family was "very concerned" about Geyser living in such close proximity, speaking via Zoom to the court. "What consideration has been given to Payton's rights and her needs for safety?" Stacie Leutner asked the court. "They made no effort to ascertain details of Payton's daily life that would be pertinent to this planning." SIGN UP TO GET TRUE CRIME NEWSLETTER "Payton has worked incredibly hard to heal from the profound trauma she endured," Stacie Leutner continued. "She deserves the right to engage in everyday activities, such as grocery shopping or visiting the library, without the agonizing fear of encountering the individual who held her down and stabbed her 19 times when she was just 12 years old." Waukesha County Circuit Court Judge Michael Bohren shared his frustration that this was not discussed prior to the hearing and ordered officials to find a new group home for Geyser, giving them a 30-day deadline. "This is what some people may refer to as a high-profile case where t's are to be crossed and i's are dotted to be sure all rights are protected," Bohren said. Geyser is scheduled to return to court for another release hearing in early June, marking the third time her release has been delayed. Geyser's defense team and the state's prosecuting attorney did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment. Prosecutors said Geyser and Weier lured Leutner to a wooded area in Waukesha after a sleepover in May 2014. Geyser stabbed Leutner repeatedly as Weier urged her on, prosecutors said. Both Weier and Geyser told authorities they felt they had to kill Leutner to become Slender Man's "proxies," or servants, and protect their families from him. Leutner was left for dead but miraculously survived the attack after she crawled out of the woods and was found by a bicyclist. "Slender Man" started with an online post in 2009, as a mysterious specter whose image people edit into everyday scenes of children at play. He is typically depicted as a spidery figure in a black suit with a featureless white face. He was regarded by his devotees as alternately a sinister force and an avenging angel. In 2017, Geyser pleaded guilty to attempted first-degree intentional homicide in Leutner's attack but claimed she was not responsible due to her mental illness. She was sentenced in 2018 to a maximum of 40 years of state mental health supervision. GET REAL-TIME UPDATES DIRECTLY ON THE TRUE CRIME HUB Geyser has been at the Winnebago Mental Health Institute for nearly a decade, but was permitted to ask the court to consider her conditional release every six months. Despite the state's pleas to keep Geyser institutionalized, Bohren determined she was no longer a danger to society. Weier also pleaded guilty to being a party to attempted second-degree intentional homicide with a dangerous weapon and was sentenced to 25 years in a mental hospital. In 2021, she was released on the condition she must live with her father and wear a GPS monitor. Stepheny Price is a writer for Fox News Digital and Fox Business. She covers topics including missing persons, homicides, national crime cases, illegal immigration, and more. Story tips and ideas can be sent to
Yahoo
13-04-2025
- Yahoo
'Slender Man' stabber to be released as state warns of 'red flags'
The Wisconsin woman who attempted to kill her 12-year-old classmate to appease the fictional character "Slender Man" will be released despite the state's claims there are still "red flags" concerning her behavior. A judge has ruled Morgan Geyser, 22, can continue with her planned conditional release from a Wisconsin mental health institute, rejecting a last-minute petition from the State Department of Health Services asking for her to remain in custody. The decision comes after failed attempts by Geyser's defense team to have her released. Officials asked Waukesha County Circuit Judge Michael Bohren to reverse his initial decision after he ordered Geyser's release in January, citing Geyser's relationship with a murder memorabilia collector and her interest in violent books. Wisconsin Girl, 15, Sentenced In Slender Man Stabbing Case In 2017, Geyser pleaded guilty to attempted first-degree intentional homicide in the violent stabbing of Payton Leutner but claimed she was not responsible due to her mental illness. She told investigators she tried to kill Leutner to please the horror character Slender Man and was ultimately found not guilty by reason of mental defect. Read On The Fox News App Geyser's defense team and the state's prosecuting attorney did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment. "Being found to be mentally ill as the cause of the crime has a pretty high standard," Dr. Gail Saltz, clinical associate professor of psychiatry at Weill Cornell Medical College, told Fox News Digital. "The standard is an identifiable illness that impacts your ability to understand that what you're doing is wrong and that you have the capacity to understand that. That's true regardless of age. So, it is quite a high standard." Wisconsin Woman Charged In 'Slender Man' Stabbing Drops Request For Early Release From Mental Health Facility Geyser and her friend, Anissa Weier, were 12 when they lured Leutner into a wooded park during a sleepover in May 2014. Geyser, encouraged by Weier, stabbed Leutner 19 times. Leutner miraculously survived the attack. SIGN UP TO GET True Crime Newsletter Geyser has been in custody at the Winnebago Mental Health Institute for the last seven years. She was initially sentenced to 40 years in the psychiatric hospital and was permitted to ask the court to consider her conditional release every six months. The Wisconsin State Department of Health Services did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment. 'Slender Man' Stabber Granted Early Release By Judge After Multiple Failed Attempts Health officials asked Bohren to reconsider, citing Geyser's relationship with a man who collects murder memorabilia. Prosecutors also said Geyser failed to inform her therapy team about a violent book she was reading. Geyser's defense attorney, Tony Cotton, refuted the claims, telling the court the center's staff members were aware the collector had visited Geyser three times in June 2023 and that she only read books that were permitted by her care team. Cotton added that after Geyser discovered the man was selling items she sent him, she broke things off. "Morgan is not more dangerous today," Cotton said. Judge Denied Release Of Woman Who Stabbed Childhood Friend Because Of 'Slender Man' Bohren also listened to testimony from three psychologists who initially recommended Geyser be released during her hearing in January. While Geyser's apparent interest in violent topics concerns prosecutors, experts say some individuals may gravitate toward materials that offer a controlled way to indulge in their morbid curiosity. "This is a gray zone in the sense that many people read violent material as a way of partaking and thinking about that sort of fantasy material," Saltz said. "Horror movies exist because many humans have sadistic and masochistic urges that are satisfied by reading about or watching material of this sort." Follow The Fox True Crime Team On X However, agency officials argued Geyser remains a danger to the community, citing the book "Rent Boy," which features topics such as murder and selling organs on the black market. Prosecutors told Bohren they believed it was concerning that Geyser reportedly only disclosed the information when confronted by her care team. "The state has real concerns these things are, frankly, just red flags at this point," Waukesha County Deputy District Attorney Abbey Nickolie said during a hearing last month. Wisconsin Woman Convicted In 'Slender Man' Stabbing Case Petitions For Conditional Release While morbid curiosities may be normal for some, experts believe those with violent pasts could be influenced by materials about their crimes. "Thought does not equal behavior," Saltz said. "That being said, [with] somebody who has committed the behavior, we do worry that ultimately that will increase their urge to do something that they truly [want] to do and lead to a behavior that is considered a problem." Despite the state's pleas to keep Geyser institutionalized, Bohren determined she was no longer a danger to society. Her next court appearance is scheduled for April 28, according to documents obtained by Fox News Digital. 'Slender Man' Case: Wisconsin Judge Orders Conditional Release For Woman Involved In Stabbing "There are many people who commit horrible assaults with the intent to kill and serve their time and the evaluation is that they acknowledge their crime, which [Geyser] clearly has," Saltz told Fox News Digital. "They fall under all the ingredients that have to do with rehabilitation, who don't even have a finding that mental illness was a factor and were then released into society. So, I'm saying this isn't a totally unique situation." GET REAL-TIME UPDATES DIRECTLY ON THE True Crime Hub Weier also pleaded guilty to being a party to attempted second-degree intentional homicide with a dangerous weapon and was sentenced to 25 years in a mental hospital. In 2021, she was released on the condition she must live with her father and wear a GPS monitor. Attorneys for Weier did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment. "You have to think about the victim in this case too," Saltz said. "The attack was unbelievably traumatic. But, at the end of the day, it's highly unusual to essentially lock up a 12-year-old for life." The Associated Press contributed to this report. Original article source: 'Slender Man' stabber to be released as state warns of 'red flags'
