Slenderman Stabbing Suspects Head to Trial This Year as Victim's Family Says They 'Will See Justice'

Morgan Geyser and Anissa Weier will stand trial later this year in the 2014 stabbing of their friend in Wisconsin, allegedly in the name of Slenderman

Photo: Courtesy Waukesha Police Department

The second of two suspects accused of attempting to kill their friend three years ago — by luring her into the woods and stabbing her 19 times — appeared in court earlier this week where a Wisconsin judge denied a motion to have a jury from a neighboring county hear the case.

Instead, 15-year-old Anissa Weier will be tried by her peers in Waukesha County, Wisconsin, officials said. Her trial is scheduled to begin Sept. 11.

Earlier this month, the other suspect in the case, 14-year-old Morgan Geyser, appeared in court where a judge determined her confession to police — parts of which were aired in the HBO documentary Beware the Slenderman — will be admissible. (The judge in Anissa’s case made a similar ruling about her own statements to investigators.)

Morgan’s trial is scheduled for Oct. 2.

In May 2014, the pair allegedly attacked Payton Leutner in the name of Slenderman, a fictional horror character popular in online stories. Left for dead in a park, Payton miraculously survived after crawling to a nearby bike path where she was spotted by a passerby.

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Payton Leutner. Courtesy Leutner Family

Anissa and Morgan have been charged as adults for attempted first-degree intentional homicide, though their attorneys sought unsuccessfully to have them tried as juveniles.

The teens have pleaded not guilty by reason of mental disease or defect. Morgan’s parents said she has been diagnosed with early-onset schizophrenia, though Anissa has no history of mental illness.

While they have remained in jail awaiting trial, Payton physically recovered from her injuries and is now thriving as a high school freshman taking Advanced Placement courses, according to her family.

The Leutners’ spokesman recently told PEOPLE, “We’re confident Payton and her family will see justice for this horrible, pre-meditated crime.”