MCKINNEY, Texas — A Texas teen who fatally stabbed a rival from another high school track and field team last year was sentenced to 35 years in prison on Tuesday.
Karmelo Anthony, 19, was convicted after a Collin County jury deliberated for two hours, 20 minutes, KXAS reported. He was charged in the stabbing death of 17-year-old Austin Metcalf on April 2, 2025, at a stadium in the Dallas suburb of Frisco, according to KDFW.
Anthony was a former student at Frisco Centennial High School, while Metcalf was a student-athlete at nearby Frisco Memorial High School, WFAA reported.
Jurors rejected the defense argument that the murder was committed under “sudden passion,” which could have reduced Anthony’s sentence to less than 20 years, KXAS reported.
“Decisions in the heat of the moment are different from decisions after cool reflection,” defense attorney Mike Howard told jurors, according to KDFW. “If he felt terror rendered him incapable of cool reflection, sudden passion applies.”
According to witnesses, Anthony and Metcalf had a heated argument in the stadium bleachers on a rainy spring day, The Associated Press reported.
Students who testified during the trial said that Anthony refused to leave a tent that belonged to Metcalf’s team, according to the news organization.
According to a police report, witnesses said Anthony reached inside a bag and allegedly told Metcalf, “Touch me and see what happens.”
Metcalf pushed Anthony, the AP reported. According to witnesses, Anthony pulled out a knife and stabbed Metcalf in the chest.
Howard told jurors that Metcalf had “no legal right to put his hands on Karmelo.”
“Texas law does not require that you wait until you get hit,” Howard said, according to the AP. “In that split second of chaos, you must put yourself in his shoes.”
The defense called just one witness during the punishment phase of the trial -- Anthony’s mother, Kala Hayes, The Dallas Morning News reported.
Howard asked Hayes if her son regretted his actions, according to the newspaper.
“Yes,”Hayes said. “I know my son, and he’s very sorry for what he did.
“Please have mercy on my son,” she told jurors.
Anthony must serve at least half of his sentence before he is eligible for parole, according to KXAS.
“Today, justice was served. A year ago, when this senseless murder unfolded, I said that it had struck a deep nerve in Collin County and far beyond,” Collin County District Attorney Greg Willis said during a news conference after the sentencing. “I asked our community to ignore all the noise and instead be levelheaded and patient as the process worked.
“And today, the process delivered accountability.”
The victim’s twin brother, Hunter Metcalf, addressed Anthony during an impact statement and said the defendant “took a son, a brother, a friend, and my best friend, from this world.”
“You took someone from me who was supposed to be an uncle, godfather to my kids,” Hunter Metcalf said. “Now I want everything taken from you.”
The case took on racial undertones due to a flood of social media posts, the AP reported. Anthony is Black while Metcalf was white, but prosecutors and the defense agreed the trial was not about race.
Jeff Metcalf, the victim’s father, also called the public response to his son’s murder sickening, KXAS reported. He said he has been the target of six swatting calls and Metcalf’s mother has been targeted twice.
Jeff Metcalf, who delivered an impact statement equally as emotional as his son’s address, banged the podium and demanded Anthony look him in the eye, according to the television station.
“With a gag order, I can’t defend myself when people want to tear down my son’s memory. That time is over,” Jeff Metcalf said. “I said from Day One this was never about race. It’s about right and wrong. We are all humans. We all bleed the same color.
“You will face those consequences starting today.”
He also spoke directly to Anthony. He said he has forgiven him and is satisfied with the outcome of the trial.
“You failed your parents, yourself, and society. You don’t belong in this community,” he said. “You can’t look me in the eyes, but you can stab my (expletive) son?”