Lead
Morgan Geyser, 23, who pleaded guilty in the 2014 Slender Man stabbing case, was reported missing after she removed an electronic monitoring device and left a group home on Saturday evening in Madison, Wisconsin. Madison police issued an alert asking the public to call 911 if they see her and said she was last seen about 8:00 p.m. with an adult acquaintance. Geyser had been conditionally released from the Winnebago Mental Health Institute earlier this year and placed in a group home following a 2018 admission after her guilty plea. Authorities and her attorney have urged her to surrender while investigators work to determine the circumstances of her disappearance.
Key takeaways
- Morgan Geyser, now 23, was reported missing on Saturday night after cutting off a Department of Corrections monitoring bracelet and leaving a group home in Madison, Wisconsin.
- Madison police said she was last seen around 8:00 p.m. with an adult acquaintance and asked the public to call 911 if they locate her.
- Geyser pleaded guilty in 2018 to attempted first-degree intentional homicide in connection with a 2014 attack on a classmate and was sent to the Winnebago Mental Health Institute.
- She received conditional release from the psychiatric facility earlier in 2025 and was placed in a group home as part of her supervised release.
- Her co-defendant, Anissa Weier, pleaded guilty to attempted second-degree intentional homicide and was released from the same psychiatric facility in 2021.
- The 2014 attack left victim Payton Leutner with more than a dozen stab wounds; she survived.
- Officials, including Geyser’s attorney Tony Cotton, have publicly urged her to turn herself in immediately for her own safety and to clarify what happened.
Background
The attack that brought Geyser to public attention occurred in 2014, when she and Anissa Weier were 12 years old. Prosecutors said the pair lured a classmate, Payton Leutner, to a park after a sleepover and stabbed her repeatedly; Leutner survived despite more than a dozen stab wounds. The girls later told investigators they believed they were acting to please the online-created figure known as Slender Man, a fictional character created by Eric Knudsen in 2009 that became a persistent internet-era bogeyman.
Following the 2014 attack, both girls were diverted from standard prison sentences into psychiatric care. Geyser pleaded guilty to attempted first-degree intentional homicide in 2018 as part of a deal that sent her to the Winnebago Mental Health Institute instead of prison. Weier pleaded guilty to attempted second-degree intentional homicide and was also committed to the same facility before her conditional release in 2021. The use of secure psychiatric treatment in lieu of incarceration reflected prosecutorial and judicial judgments about the defendants’ ages and mental health at the time of the offense.
Main event
On the evening in question, Madison police posted an alert saying Geyser had cut off a Department of Corrections monitoring bracelet and left a group home in Madison around 8:00 p.m., accompanied by an adult acquaintance. The alert asked anyone who sees her to call 911 immediately. Local authorities have not publicly disclosed the identity of the acquaintance or whether that person is a suspect in any wrongdoing.
Geyser’s attorney, Tony Cotton, posted an Instagram video urging his client to surrender and saying he did not know the facts of her disappearance. He told Geyser directly that turning herself in would be in her best interest and stressed uncertainty about whether anyone assisted her in leaving the group home. Officials have reiterated that cutting an official monitoring device violates the terms of conditional release and triggers a law-enforcement response.
The Department of Corrections monitoring bracelet is used to supervise individuals on conditional release; officials indicated the device was deliberately removed. Authorities have described the incident as an escape from supervised placement rather than a parole violation technicality, and they have mobilized local resources to find her while notifying neighboring jurisdictions.
Analysis & implications
The disappearance raises immediate public-safety and procedural questions about supervision of individuals released from secure psychiatric facilities. Conditional release programs balance public protection with rehabilitation, but enforcement depends on electronic monitoring, staffing at group homes and rapid reporting. An intentional removal of a monitoring bracelet and departure from supervised housing shows how supervision gaps can manifest as acute risks.
For victim-survivors and community members, the event revives traumatic memories of the 2014 attack and may increase calls for stricter oversight or policy changes. Lawmakers and victim advocates often react to such episodes by pushing for regulatory reviews of conditional-release protocols, including device tamper alerts, staff training, and communication between mental-health institutions and law-enforcement agencies.
Clinically, this case sits at the intersection of juvenile mental-health treatment and public accountability. Courts increasingly rely on psychiatric commitments for juveniles who commit serious offenses, but transitions back to community settings require coordinated case management. If gaps in supervision or communication contributed to Geyser’s disappearance, agencies may face pressure to alter release criteria or to increase monitoring intensity for those with histories of serious violence.
Comparison & data
| Item | Geyser (2014–2025) | Weier (2014–2021) |
|---|---|---|
| Age at offense | 12 | 12 |
| Charges pleaded | Attempted first‑degree intentional homicide (guilty plea, 2018) | Attempted second‑degree intentional homicide (guilty plea) |
| Facility | Winnebago Mental Health Institute (committed 2018) | Winnebago Mental Health Institute (committed) |
| Conditional release | Granted 2025; placed in group home | Granted 2021; released from facility |
The table summarizes key legal and custodial milestones for Geyser and Weier. It highlights a multi-year commitment to psychiatric care and staggered conditional releases: Weier in 2021 and Geyser in 2025. These timelines illustrate how similar juvenile cases can produce different community re-entry schedules based on clinical assessments and legal agreements.
Reactions & quotes
Local law enforcement framed the situation as an active missing-person case and asked the public for assistance and vigilance.
If you see Geyser, please call 911.
Madison Police Department (missing-person alert)
Geyser’s defense attorney appealed directly to his client and emphasized uncertainty about the circumstances, urging immediate surrender.
It’s in her best interest for her to turn herself in immediately and not continue with this course of action.
Tony Cotton (defense attorney)
Unconfirmed
- Whether the adult acquaintance seen with Geyser assisted her in cutting off the monitoring device or facilitating her departure remains unconfirmed.
- No public information has yet confirmed the route she took or whether she left Madison county immediately after exiting the group home.
- There is no official disclosure about whether any staff shortages or procedural lapses at the group home contributed to her leaving; investigators have not released such details.
Bottom line
Morgan Geyser’s disappearance after removing a Department of Corrections monitoring bracelet presents a fast-moving public-safety and supervision challenge. The case restarts public and policymaker scrutiny of conditional-release practices for people committed after serious juvenile offenses, balancing rehabilitation with community protection.
Officials and Geyser’s attorney have urged her to surrender; investigators are seeking information about the adult acquaintance and the circumstances of her departure. How authorities reconcile patient privacy, clinical judgment and public safety in the weeks ahead may shape future oversight of psychiatric-to-community transitions.