Texas Judge Denies Karmelo Anthony New Trial in 2025 Track Meet Murder, Defense Appeals
Updated
Updated · The Associated Press · Aug 23
Texas Judge Denies Karmelo Anthony New Trial in 2025 Track Meet Murder, Defense Appeals
3 articles · Updated · The Associated Press · Aug 23
Summary
Judge Michael Chitty rejected Karmelo Anthony’s bid for a new trial after a two-day hearing, leaving intact his June murder conviction and 35-year sentence for fatally stabbing 17-year-old Austin Metcalf.
Anthony’s lawyers argued an off-the-record deal to exclude damaging character evidence collapsed as he prepared to testify, forcing a last-minute defense shift that led him not to take the stand.
The defense also said trial judge John Roach’s courtroom restrictions limited public access and cited his posttrial TV remarks backing the verdict; prosecutors said the trial was fair and welcomed the ruling.
The case drew national attention after the April 2025 killing at a Frisco high school track meet, where jurors rejected Anthony’s self-defense claim and found he was the aggressor in the bleacher confrontation.