--- description: Two girls accused of stabbing a classmate 19 times – as an homage to an online fictional character known as Slender Man – returned to... title: Stabbing Suspect Believed Slender Man Would 'Kill My Whole Family in 3 Seconds' image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt77680bc8c42dcb24/69877f8906f2c1205c333fe3/ap57418150295.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [U.S.](/section/us/) ## U.S. Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Stabbing Suspect Believed Slender Man Would 'Kill My Whole Family in 3 Seconds' by [Elaine Aradillas / People](/author/people/) ## Elaine Aradillas / People Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Feb 17, 2015 2:14 AM CUT  One of two 12-year-old girls accused of stabbing a classmate to please the fictional character Slender Man is led into a courtroom at the Waukesha County Courthouse in Waukesha, Wis., on Nov. 18, 2014 One of two 12-year-old girls accused of stabbing a classmate to please the fictional character Slender Man is led into a courtroom at the Waukesha County Courthouse in Waukesha, Wis., on Nov. 18, 2014Charles Auer—AP by [Elaine Aradillas / People](/author/people/) ## Elaine Aradillas / People Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Feb 17, 2015 2:14 AM CUT Two girls accused of [stabbing a classmate](http://www.people.com/article/wisconsin-girls-12-charged-after-stabbing-friend-19-times-slender-man "undefined") 19 times – as an homage to an online fictional character known as [Slender Man](http://www.people.com/article/slender-man-myth-wisconsin-girls-murder-friend "undefined") – returned to Waukesha County Court on Monday where a judge will decide whether there’s enough evidence to go to trial. Anissa Weier, 13, and Morgan Geyser, 12, were charged as adults for intentional homicide. In a pre-trial hearing, Geyser’s attorney argued that the girl’s obsession with Slender Man warrants a lesser charge, which would allow for her case to be tried in juvenile court. On Monday the court was shown a police interrogation video in which Weier said she believed she had to kill someone or else Slender Man would “kill my whole family in three seconds,” [reports ABC News](http://abcnews.go.com/US/slender-man-stabbing-suspect-expressed-fear-character-kill/story?id=29004277 "undefined"). At the hearing, a detective told the court that the victim said Geyser apologized before stabbing her, according to a [Tweet from Bruce Vielmetti](https://twitter.com/ProofHearsay/with%5Freplies "undefined"), a reporter at the _Milwaukee Journal Sentinel_. On May 30, [Payton Leutner](http://www.people.com/article/slender-man-stabbing-victim-payton-leutner-parents-speak "undefined"), whose identity was revealed on ABC’s _20/20_, attended a slumber party with Weier and Geyser. The following day, the trio walked to a park where she was stabbed. Leutner managed to crawl her way to a bike path where a [passerby called 911](http://www.people.com/article/slender-man-stabbing-911-call-12-year-old-wisconsin-morgan-geyser-anissai-weier-attempted-murder "undefined"). For months, attorneys for both girls argued they [were incompetent](http://www.people.com/article/second-girl-slender-man-case-unfit-for-trial "undefined") to stand trial but Circuit Judge Michael Bohren denied their request after [hearing from the state’s doctor](http://www.people.com/article/judge-rules-slender-man-stabbing-suspects-ok-to-stand-trial "undefined"). The hearing is expected to conclude Tuesday. [_This article originally appeared on PEOPLE.com_](http://www.people.com/article/slender-man-suspects-return-court "undefined") ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3711414/slender-man-stabbing-anissa-weier-morgan-geyser-payon-leutner-waukesha/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3711414/slender-man-stabbing-anissa-weier-morgan-geyser-payon-leutner-waukesha/"},"headline":"Stabbing Suspect Believed Slender Man Would 'Kill My Whole Family in 3 Seconds'","datePublished":"2015-02-17T02:14:38.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T04:27:54.477Z","description":"Two girls accused of stabbing a classmate 19 times – as an homage to an online fictional character known as Slender Man – returned to...","url":"https://time.com/3711414/slender-man-stabbing-anissa-weier-morgan-geyser-payon-leutner-waukesha/","keywords":["Crime"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt77680bc8c42dcb24/69877f8906f2c1205c333fe3/ap57418150295.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Elaine Aradillas / People"}],"articleSection":"U.S.","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt77680bc8c42dcb24/69877f8906f2c1205c333fe3/ap57418150295.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Girls Stabbing Plot","caption":"Girls Stabbing Plot","creditText":"Charles Auer—AP","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/us/","name":"U.S."}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3711414/slender-man-stabbing-anissa-weier-morgan-geyser-payon-leutner-waukesha/","name":"Stabbing Suspect Believed Slender Man Would 'Kill My Whole Family in 3 Seconds'"}}]}] ```