Judge to review competency of Wisconsin girl in Slenderman case

[November 12, 2014]  By Brendan O'Brien
 
 MILWAUKEE (Reuters) - A Wisconsin judge on Wednesday is scheduled to review the mental competency of a girl accused of luring a classmate into the woods and repeatedly stabbing her to please Slenderman, a fictional Internet character.

The girl, Morgan Geyser, and her friend, Anissa Weier, were both 12 when they were charged as adults with first-degree attempted homicide in the attack on a friend the morning after a sleepover in late May in Waukesha, a suburb west of Milwaukee.

The girls told investigators they attacked their friend to impress Slenderman, a tall, online bogeyman that they insisted was real, according to a criminal complaint.

The girl was stabbed 19 times, but survived. She spent six days in the hospital before returning home for further recovery and returned to school in September, a family spokesman said.

Waukesha County Circuit Court Judge Michael Bohren ruled Geyser incompetent to stand trial on Aug. 1, when two mental health professionals told the court she lacked the capacity to assist in her own defense.

Bohren ordered Geyser to be committed to the state's department of health services. He could rule on Wednesday that she is mentally competent to stand trial or still incompetent.

Weier, who is now 13, was found competent to stand trial under mental evaluations released publicly in court on Oct. 22. Weier's attorneys have objected to the findings and Bohren has scheduled a competency hearing for her on Dec. 18.

Wisconsin law requires attempted homicide cases involving suspects at least 10 years old to begin in adult court before attorneys can ask a judge to move the case to juvenile court.

The girls could be sentenced to up to 60 years in prison if convicted as adults of attempted homicide. They could be held until age 25 if convicted as juveniles.

(Editing by Eric Walsh)

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