WAUKESHA, Wis. — A Waukesha County judge reaffirmed his decision to grant Morgan Geyser conditional release on Thursday after the state petitioned to revoke her release from Winnebago Mental Health Institute.
22-year-old Geyser, who stabbed a classmate to appease the fictional character Slender Man in 2014, was initially granted release in January by Waukesha County Circuit Court Judge Michael Bohren. The state filed a last-minute petition on Feb. 28 to block her release over concerns about a book Geyser was reading and a man she had contact with.
“The state has not met its burden by clear and convincing evidence to show that Miss. Geyser is a risk of safety to herself, danger to herself, danger to others or danger to property,” Judge Bohren said in a motion hearing Thursday.
Three doctors who evaluated Geyser in January testified that new allegations don’t carry a risk factor and that she is well enough to be released.
Dr. Lisa Portman testifed that Geyser’s therapy has gone well and accurately reflects her improved condition: “I saw somebody who I interpreted as being very authentic and processing authentic emotions and thoughts, relating to her envionrment and bringing that into the therapy session.”
The state questioned Geyser’s reading of the book Rent Boy because it contains violent themes including murder and sadism. Geyser’s defense attorney Anthony Cotton argued the book does not pose a concern, especially because Geyser did not request to read it — someone outside the mental institute sent it to her in the mail.
Dr. Ken Robbins testified that Geyser reads a variety of books: “She’s trying to experience a full range of what’s going on in the universe, including what’s going on in culture, and certainly there’s a lot of violence in our culture… Do I think she takes particular pleasure in violence or in gore? No, I don’t see evidence to suggest that.”
Testimony revealed that Geyser had been in contact with an older man who met her at Winnebago at one point. In their correspondence, the man claimed he had received some of her artwork, including distrubing drawings, and appeared fixated on her criminal case.
The defense noted that it was Geyser who cut off contact with the man when she found out his fixation on true crime.
“[Geyser] herself has asked for a no-contact order,” said Cotton. Â
It’s unclear how long it will take the Department of Health Services to draft the conditional release plan. Judge Bohren set the the next hearing to review her plan for March 21.
Geyser will be placed at a group home once released.
“There’s substantial supervision placed over the person on supervised release,” Judge Bohren said. “[It’s] in many ways more strict from the rules and restrictions on the person than what would be when she’s at the institution.”
Geyser’s accomplice, Anissa Weier, was released from Winnebago Mental Health Institute in 2021.
