Where Is Payton Leutner Now? Life More Than a Decade After the Slender Man Stabbing

Payton Leutner was 12 years old when two friends, Morgan Geyser and Anissa Weier, lured her into the woods near Waukesha, Wisconsin, on May 31, 2014, and stabbed her 19 times in an attack that nearly killed her. Miraculously, Leutner crawled to a nearby path where a cyclist found her and emergency surgery saved her life.

The attack and immediate aftermath

The night before the assault, the three girls had slept over for a birthday. While playing hide-and-seek the next morning, Geyser and Weier pinned Payton down and attacked her with a kitchen knife. Surgeons later reported that some wounds were superficial but others struck vital organs: one wound pierced her liver and stomach, and another reached her heart, narrowly missing a major artery. Doctors said the outcome could easily have been fatal.

“If the knife had gone the width of a human hair further, she wouldn't have lived,” said one of the surgeons involved in her care.

Recovery

Leutner spent 10 days in the hospital and months in follow-up care, including emergency surgery and emotional counseling. The attack left lasting psychological effects: for a time she slept beside her mother, kept new friends at arm’s length, and used small safety measures at night as she healed emotionally. In later interviews she described ongoing fear but also resilience and gratitude for the support she received.

Legal outcomes for the attackers

Geyser and Weier were arrested and charged as adults. In 2017 both pleaded guilty to attempted homicide charges and were found not guilty by reason of mental disease or defect. Rather than standard prison terms, they were committed to psychiatric facilities: Weier faced up to 25 years and was discharged from a state mental health institute under supervision in September 2021 after applying for conditional release; Geyser faced up to 40 years and was released under supervision in July 2025 with conditions including electronic monitoring and residence in a supervised group home.

Where Payton is now

Leutner has mostly kept her life private. She completed high school, enrolled in college and took honors classes, and has pursued studies with the goal of a career in the medical field — a path inspired in part by her medical recovery. In a rare 2019 interview she reflected on the attack with surprising perspective: while she said she still struggles with fear and trust, she also credited the experience with giving her direction she did not have at age 12.

She has expressed gratitude for the support of family, friends and strangers and has said her priority is to move forward and live a normal life. The family has remained vigilant around developments involving her former friends, and law enforcement has coordinated with them when concerns arose about supervised releases.

Looking ahead

More than a decade after the attack, Payton Leutner’s story is a reminder of both the dangers that can arise when disturbing internet myths intersect with vulnerable minds and the long, private work of recovery after violence. Leutner’s progress — continuing her education and training for a medical career while maintaining privacy — is the latest chapter in a story defined by survival and determination.