Karmelo Anthony found guilty of murder. A look at the trial after verdict – USA Today

Editor’s Note: A jury in Collin County, Texas, found Karmelo Anthony guilty of murder on Tuesday, June 9.
A Collin County jury has ruled on the fate of Karmelo Anthony, the Texas teenager accused of fatally stabbing fellow student Austin Metcalf during a high school track meet, after attorneys delivered closing arguments and rested their cases in a trial that has drawn national attention.
The jury found Anthony, 19, guilty of murder on June 9, NBC 5 DFW and Fox 4 reported.
Anthony was charged with murder in the April 2025 death of Metcalf, 17, at a track meet in Frisco, Texas. According to Fox 4 News, jurors began deliberating on Tuesday after hearing final arguments from prosecutors and defense attorneys following four days of testimony and evidence.
The jury was tasked to determine whether Anthony intentionally or knowingly caused Metcalf’s death, whether the evidence supports a lesser charge of manslaughter, or whether Anthony acted in self-defense, as his attorneys have argued. After being found guilty of murder, Anthony is facing a sentence ranging from five years to life in prison, according to Fox 4 News.
The case has generated widespread attention far beyond North Texas, fueled by conflicting accounts of the confrontation, Anthony’s self-defense claim and extensive discussion on social media. If jurors did not reach a verdict Tuesday, they would have been sequestered to continue deliberations Wednesday, according to the Associated Press.
As the trial enters its final stage, here’s what to know about the case.
Anthony, who attended Centennial High School at the time of the incident and has since graduated, was accused of fatally stabbing Metcalf, a student at Memorial High School, during a track meet at Kuykendall Stadium in Frisco on April 2, 2025.
A Collin County grand jury indicted Anthony on a first-degree murder charge in June 2025 after reviewing evidence in the case. Anthony had previously been arrested on a murder charge and later released on bond.
During and before the trial, Anthony maintained that he acted in self-defense.
According to an arrest warrant affidavit obtained by USA TODAY, the confrontation began after a dispute between the two teenagers during the meet.
Authorities said Anthony told officers he was protecting himself after the incident. Metcalf died of his injuries. Both were 17 at the time.
Prosecutors argued that the stabbing was an unjustified attack that stemmed from a disagreement over Anthony’s presence under a Memorial High School team tent during the rainy track meet, the Associated Press reported. Defense attorneys contended that Anthony believed he was threatened and acted to protect himself after physical contact occurred.
According to Fox 4 News, prosecutors called 21 witnesses before resting their case June 6. Jurors heard testimony from students who described Anthony as the aggressor and said he had been asked to leave the tent before the confrontation.
Jurors also heard from Dr. Elizabeth Ventura, Collin County’s chief medical examiner, who testified that Metcalf suffered a fatal stab wound to the heart.
The defense rested Monday, June 8, without calling Anthony to testify. According to the Associated Press, one of Anthony’s teammates testified that Anthony appeared “distraught” after the stabbing and repeatedly said, “I told him not to touch me.”
The defense’s witnesses testified that athletes commonly gathered under other schools’ tents during track meets, while a Frisco police officer told jurors that Anthony’s pocketknife was legal under Texas law, though it violated school district policy.
Metcalf’s father, Jeff Metcalf, has said he believes justice will be served through the court process, while acknowledging that no verdict can bring back his son.
Before the trial and subsequent verdict, Anthony’s family urged the public not to prejudge the case and had previously said they faced threats and harassment after the stabbing.
This story was updated to add new information.
Reporter Anthony Thompson can be reached at ajthompson@usatodayco.com or on X @athompsonUSAT.

source