Two Wisconsin girls who allegedly stabbed a classmate 19 times to please the "Slender Man" fictional online character are competent to stand trial, a judge has decided. Both girls, who were 12 when they allegedly tried to kill another 12-year-old girl after a sleepover, have been charged as adults. Morgan Geyser, who is still 12, was ruled incompetent in August after a psychologist testified that she was delusional, but at a hearing yesterday, her lawyer decided not to dispute a state psychiatrist's finding that she is now fit for trial, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports. The attorney told the judge that Geyser is being treated for schizophrenia.
In a separate hearing, Anissa Weier, now 13, was also deemed competent after the judge decided that "issues of age and maturity do not override her competency," the AP reports. Psychologists who testified for the defense argued that although she is intelligent and articulate, she has trouble making decisions and understanding issues like the risk of turning down a plea bargain. Lawyers for both girls are trying to have the case moved to juvenile court. The judge decided to allow Geyser to remain at the mental health institute where she has been for months after her lawyer argued that returning her to the juvenile detention facility where Weier is still being held could lead to her becoming unfit for trial again. (The sinister Slender Man character was created by an online forum user in 2009.)
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