A Texas prosecutor confirmed Thursday that both defense and prosecution agreed to keep certain evidence out of the trial of Karmelo Anthony, including details about Anthony's alleged obsession with weapons and a text in which he fantasized about stabbing someone. That agreement is now central to Anthony's push for a new trial after he was sentenced to 35 years in prison for killing 17-year-old Austin Metcalf at a high school track meet last year near Dallas.
Anthony, 19, sat at the defense table as one of his attorneys argued before a Collin County judge that several court errors, including the off-the-record arrangement between legal teams, warranted a retrial. The hearing was set to continue Friday. The original trial judge, Michael Chitty, had been removed from the case Wednesday after Anthony's lawyers requested his recusal.
The killing occurred during a confrontation in stadium bleachers after Anthony refused to leave a tent belonging to Metcalf's team at a track meet competition. Witnesses testified that Metcalf and others repeatedly told Anthony to leave, leading to an escalating exchange. Prosecutors said Anthony provoked the confrontation and was the aggressor. According to a police report, Anthony reached into his bag and said, "Touch me and see what happens" before stabbing Metcalf in the chest when Metcalf pushed him.
What the Right Is Saying
Prosecutor Bill Wirskye argued Anthony received a fair trial and said his original defense attorneys agreed to everything done during proceedings. He maintained he withheld character evidence because he wanted to focus on the moments leading up to the stabbing, not distract from the core facts.
"Witness after witness came in and said Anthony did it and it was not self-defense," Wirskye said. He described how Anthony "went there that day spoiling for a fight." The prosecutor noted Anthony had an obsession with guns and knives, evidence he deliberately kept from jurors because it risked inflaming the case unnecessarily.
Wirskye cited extensive threats against the trial judge, fake autopsy reports circulating online, and efforts to intimidate witnesses. He said lawyers on both sides feared for their safety during proceedings. Metcalf's parents attended Thursday's hearing; Anthony's family has also reported being targets of harassment since the killing drew national attention.
Supporters of the conviction argue Metcalf's family deserves finality after enduring a year of threats and scrutiny, and that the jury carefully weighed all evidence before reaching a guilty verdict.
What the Left Is Saying
Defense attorney Russell Wilson, who did not represent Anthony at trial, told the judge that the original court allowed a "shadow docket" that shielded character information about both sides from the official record. "Everything was done off the record, at an astonishing clip," Wilson said. He argued this limited appellate review and other defense efforts.
Lead trial attorney Mike Howard said the defense possessed information showing Metcalf had used racial slurs in the past and bullied Black classmates—evidence that never reached jurors. Howard noted both sides told jurors during trial that race played no role, yet social media amplified the killing in racial terms nationwide. "All of us wanted the temperature on this, so to say, to be turned down," Howard said.
Civil liberties advocates have questioned whether 35 years is proportionate for a teenager involved in a confrontation where self-defense remains disputed. The new details about evidence withheld raise questions about whether jurors had the full picture needed to render a fair verdict.
What the Numbers Show
Karmelo Anthony was convicted of murder in June 2025 and sentenced to 35 years in prison with no possibility of parole for 30 years. He was 18 at the time of the killing; Metcalf was 17.
The case generated significant online engagement, with posts about the stabbing amassing millions of views across social media platforms. The Texas Rangers investigated threats made against both families and court personnel during the proceedings.
Judge Michael Chitty had been presiding over the case before his removal Wednesday on motion from Anthony's defense team, which cited his TV interview saying jurors "got it right" as evidence of bias. District Judge John Roach was assigned to consider the retrial request but recused himself; Senior Judge James R. Gapps is now overseeing the hearing.
The Bottom Line
The outcome of Anthony's new trial motion remains uncertain. If granted, Anthony would face a second prosecution for Metcalf's death under potentially different evidentiary rules. The case has become a flashpoint over how courts handle high-profile cases with intense public pressure and racial dimensions.
Whether the undisclosed evidence about both young men—Anthony's text messages about stabbing and Metcalf's reported use of slurs—would have changed the jury's assessment of self-defense claims will likely be central to appellate arguments regardless of Friday's ruling. Watch for a decision from Judge Gapps on whether procedural errors warrant setting aside the conviction.