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'Slender Man' stabbing suspects to be tried as adults

By Danielle Haynes

WAUKESHA, Wis., March 13 (UPI) -- A Wisconsin judge Friday ruled two girls accused of stabbing a classmate 19 times in order to appease the fictional character Slender Man will be tried as adults.

Lawyers for Morgan Geyser, 12, and Anissa Weier, 13, argued the girls acted out of fear of the character and their charges should be second-degree attempted homicide meaning they could be tried in juvenile court.

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Their attorneys said Geyser had schizophrenia and Weier believed her family would be killed if she didn't kill her classmate -- both mitigating factors that should mean the case stays in juvenile court.

Circuit Judge Michael Bohren disagreed, ruling the girls should face first-degree charges.

There's still a chance the girls could face trial in a juvenile court as their lawyers could argue for it on other grounds. Weier faces another hearing on the matter May 26 and Geyser's is scheduled for June 17.

Geyser and Weier allegedly stabbed their schoolmate 19 times while all three were at a sleepover to celebrate Geyser's 12th birthday May 31.

Geyser and Weier told police they had encountered Slender Man on a horror website called Creepypasta Wiki. Geyser allegedly told police Slender Man had threatened to kill their families unless they killed for him.

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Weier said they wanted to kill their friend and then walk to Slender Man's mansion, which they believed was in Nicolet National Forest, a huge stretch of wilderness in northern Wisconsin. A sheriff's deputy found them Saturday afternoon walking near I-94.

The original plan was to carry out the stabbing during the sleepover, Weier said, but she and Geyser decided to put it off. She told detectives that their first attempt was in a bathroom in the park and they then distracted the victim with a game of hide and seek.

Both girls were initially found incompetent to stand trial, but after further evaluations they have both been cleared.

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