A Texas judge on Saturday rejected Karmelo Anthony’s attempt to secure a new trial in the fatal stabbing of 17 year old Austin Metcalf at a high school track meet.
The ruling leaves Anthony’s murder conviction and 35 year prison sentence intact.
Judge Michael Chitty issued [1] a brief order after a two day hearing near Dallas, saying he had reviewed the evidence and arguments presented.
He offered no extended explanation, delivering a blunt setback to a defense seeking to reopen a nationally watched case.
Anthony, now 19, was convicted of murder in June for killing Metcalf during the April 2025 meet in Frisco, a Dallas suburb.
The confrontation between athletes from different high schools quickly became a national flashpoint, fueled by social media and racial commentary.
Defense attorney Russell Wilson promptly said an appeal would follow. “Our commitment to our client has not changed,” Wilson said.
“We will continue to advocate vigorously on his behalf through every lawful avenue available.”
The retrial request focused heavily on a private understanding between prosecutors and Anthony’s trial lawyers concerning damaging character evidence about both teenagers.
Both camps had agreed not to introduce material that could further inflame a proceeding already surrounded by racial tensions, online fury, harassment, and death threats.
Anthony is Black and Metcalf was white, a fact repeatedly amplified across social media after the killing.
Yet attorneys for both the prosecution and defense told jurors that race was not the issue, and the case itself turned on the confrontation, the knife, and the fatal wound.
Defense lawyers argued that fears prosecutors might abandon the evidence agreement arose as Anthony prepared to testify.
They said a heated dispute between the legal teams forced a sudden change in strategy, leading Anthony not to take the stand, a decision they later cited as grounds for another trial.
WATCH:
!function(r,u,m,b,l,e){r._Rumble=b,r[b]||(r[b]=function(){(r[b]._=r[b]._||[]).push(arguments);if(r[b]._.length==1){l=u.createElement(m),e=u.getElementsByTagName(m)[0],l.async=1,l.src="https://rumble.com/embedJS/u1vds3"+(arguments[1].video?'.'+arguments[1].video:'')+"/?url="+encodeURIComponent(location.href)+"&args="+encodeURIComponent(JSON.stringify([].slice.apply(arguments))),e.parentNode.insertBefore(l,e)}})}(window, document, "script", "Rumble");
Rumble("play", {"video":"v7cd8ts","div":"rumble_v7cd8ts"});
Prosecutor Bill Wirskye defended the original proceeding as fair during this week’s hearing.
The state maintained that the defense received a lawful trial and that disagreement over strategy after a conviction does not automatically entitle a defendant to a second bite at the apple.
After Chitty’s ruling, Collin County District Attorney Greg Willis welcomed the result. “We respect, and expected, the court’s decision denying the motion for a new trial,” Willis said.
“The jury’s guilty verdict stands, and we remain confident in the process. Every defendant has the right to appeal, and our thoughts and prayers remain with the Metcalf family in the painful wake of last week’s hearing.”
The defense also challenged the strict courtroom rules imposed by trial judge John Roach, claiming those restrictions limited public access.
Anthony’s lawyers sought Roach’s recusal as well, pointing to a posttrial television interview in which he openly agreed with the verdict reached by the jury.
“Whatever they say, they got it right,” Roach said of the jurors’ decision.
Roach argued that his courtroom controls were necessary to protect a fair trial, while prosecutors said his conduct provided no legitimate basis to erase the conviction.
Jurors rejected Anthony’s claim that he acted in self defense during the encounter in the bleachers.
WATCH:
!function(r,u,m,b,l,e){r._Rumble=b,r[b]||(r[b]=function(){(r[b]._=r[b]._||[]).push(arguments);if(r[b]._.length==1){l=u.createElement(m),e=u.getElementsByTagName(m)[0],l.async=1,l.src="https://rumble.com/embedJS/u1vds3"+(arguments[1].video?'.'+arguments[1].video:'')+"/?url="+encodeURIComponent(location.href)+"&args="+encodeURIComponent(JSON.stringify([].slice.apply(arguments))),e.parentNode.insertBefore(l,e)}})}(window, document, "script", "Rumble");
Rumble("play", {"video":"v7cd8wi","div":"rumble_v7cd8wi"});
Witnesses testified that Anthony sat beneath a tent belonging to Metcalf’s team and was repeatedly told by Metcalf and others to leave, setting off an argument that escalated.
Prosecutors told the jury that Anthony provoked the confrontation, and multiple witnesses identified him as the aggressor.
According to a police report, Anthony reached into a bag during the dispute and warned, “Touch me and see what happens,” a statement that carried obvious weight in the state’s case.
Witnesses said Metcalf then pushed Anthony, who drew a knife and stabbed the teenager in the chest.
That sequence proved fatal to the self defense theory, with jurors concluding that the response was murder rather than a legally justified effort to ward off danger.
The killing unfolded on a rainy spring day as several school teams gathered for competition, turning an ordinary athletic event into a scene of horror.
The resulting case brought intense attention and ugly harassment for both families, but the legal question remained narrow, whether Anthony unlawfully killed Metcalf.
For now, the jury’s verdict stands, Chitty has refused to reset the courtroom clock, and Anthony remains sentenced to 35 years.
His lawyers can press their appeal, but their first major effort to undo the conviction has been firmly denied.