On May 31, 2014, in Waukesha, Wisconsin, two 12-year-olds named Morgan Geyser and Anissa Weier allegedly stabbed their classmate, Payton Leutner, nineteen times. The motive behind their attempted murder was that they wished to become proxies of the fictional character called Slender Man. He resembles an unnaturally tall man wearing a black suit with no face. He is depicted as a stalker who makes a game out of abducting and traumatizing people, especially children.

Morgan and Anissa had been planning to kill their friend for months. Finally, they decided to invite her over for a sleepover at Morgan’s house. They planned to start the murder at 2 a.m., when they would duct tape her mouth, stab her in the neck then run so they wouldn’t have to see her eyes. They later changed the plan because Morgan wished to give Payton another day to live.

As their final plan, Morgan and Anissa led Payton into the woods and started a game of hide and seek. When the game was over, Anissa sat on Payton, but she started screaming. Morgan tackled her while both girls took turns stabbing the victim. Across town, her mother was painting a patio set outside when a police officer and an undercover detective approached her to tell her what had happened.

While most of the wounds that Payton received were skin-deep, two of the stabs were near vital organs. Doctors said that if the stab to her heart had been the width of a human hair deeper, Payton would not have lived. The other vital organ wound was to her diaphragm, which cut into her liver and stomach. Both wounds were repaired during a six-hour surgery, after which Payton was only able to communicate by writing on a piece of paper. When she was able to speak, Payton’s first words to her parents were “ I want to go home.”

Both girls were charged with first-degree intentional homicide. During the summer, they were taken to a juvenile detention center and were in and out of court hearings. On August 1, 2014, a judge deemed Morgan fit to stand trial after two doctors testified on her mental state.

Morgan and Anissa are now both 13. Their lawyers are attempting to move the case to juvenile court, but both girls have been charged in adult court with attempted first-degree murder. The girls face up to 65 years in prison.