One of two teens charged in Waukesha’s notorious “Slenderman” stabbing has entered a guilty plea. Anissa Weier pleaded guilty on Monday to an amended charge of attempted second degree intentional homicide, party to a crime with use of a deadly weapon in the so-called Slenderman case.
The 15-year-old Weier is charged along with Morgan Geyser in the attempted murder of a sixth grade classmate in 2014. Investigators say the attack was an attempted sacrifice to the online character Slenderman.
“I believed that if I didn’t go through with it, Slenderman would come and attack and kill myself, my friends, and my family,” Weier told a Waukesha County judge during Monday’s hearing.
Weier initially faced a charge of attempted first-degree intentional homicide. Jurors will now have to determine whether Weier is guilty, or not guility by reason of mental disease or defect.
Geyser also was in court Monday, for a status hearing that focused on scheduling issues before her October 16 trial. Geyser has pleaded not guilty by reason of mental disease to attempted homicide charges in adult court — the same plea initially entered by Weier.
Weier’s lawyer said he is hoping to work with prosecutors on a deal that avoids a trial altogether. “It’s stressful for Morgan, who needs care on a regular basis. It’s stressful on the victim’s family for them to wonder about the uncertainty of where this thing is going. So, yeah, I see it as different process on our end,” said attorney Anthony Cotton.
