12-year-old stabbing suspect Morgan Geyser NOT competent, so what does that mean for criminal case?
WAUKESHA COUNTY (WITI) -- Two 12-year-old girls stand accused of luring a friend into the woods and stabbing her 19 times in an effort to please a fictional online horror character. On Friday, one of those girls, 12-year-old Morgan Geyser was found incompetent for trial. So where does the case go from here?
Geyser appeared in court on Friday, August 1st in Waukesha County as medical professionals weighed in on her mental state.
Morgan Geyser
The first doctor to testify was court-appointed -- Dr. Brooke Lundbohm. She told the court that Geyser believes she has Vulcan mind control abilities, can speak to Voldemort and believes in unicorns.
"She expressed the belief that she does posses Vulcan mind control. She once regressed into ramblings about a student in her class being a Pegasus," Dr. Lundbohm said.
When referring to Slenderman, Dr. Lundbohm said of Geyser, "It's a person who she has a strong bond with. That she idolizes and believes to be real."
Dr. Lundbohm said Geyser repeatedly laughed inappropriately and squatted in a chair during her competency interview. The doctor told the court she believes Geyser is not competent but likely to become competent. Dr. Lundbohm said, "She needs to grow up" and recommended medication.
A second doctor, Dr. Kenneth Robbins, testified that Geyser "looked happy, almost giddy" during his mental exam of her. Dr. Robbins said Geyser believes she can communicate with Slenderman and the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Geyser apparently told Dr. Robbins that Vulcan mind control will make herself feel and believe whatever she likes; that she's not concerned about a long prison sentence.
A judge declared Geyser incompetent for trial, and she'll now be committed for treatment.
So what does that mean for the legal case against her?
"What happens next is she is basically put into a mental health facility that has detention. It is a criminal mental health facility and she can be held, because of the nature of the charge, for up to one year," Marquette Law School Professor and former Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice Janine Geske said.
Geske says Geyser will continue to be evaluated and treated, and if she becomes competent, the court will be notified and court officials could schedule a hearing.
If Geyser doesn't become competent...
"What happens next is the court can hold a hearing at the end and the question then becomes is she likely to regain competency? Because if she has some mental defects, for example, that she's never going to be mentally competent -- then they can't proceed with the criminal charges," Geske said.
If that were to happen, that doesn't mean Geyser would never have to face trial. She could be committed -- and if she regained competency sometime in the future, Geske says the criminal case would resume.
We're told the main things doctors are looking for when declaring someone competent or incompetent is whether the individual is suffering from mental disease or defect, and whether she understands the charges against her and can assist her lawyer with her defense.
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