3 Key Moments From The Karmelo Anthony Trial You Should Know

A number of devastating revelations against the defense team came to light this past week in the murder trial of Karmelo Anthony.

Anthony, who admitted to fatally stabbing 17-year-old student Austin Metcalf at a track meet in April 2025, is facing a first-degree murder charge and life in prison. The case has been tinged by race in the public, due to the glaring lack of mainstream media coverage and the narrative peddled by Anthony family advocates and supporters. Anthony is black and Metcalf is white.

Defense race narrative out the window 

Though Anthony’s team has tried to make race a component of the murder — both inside and outside of the courtroom — witnesses have disrupted that narrative so far. A number of teen witnesses called to the stand by the state have been black, and they’ve all said Anthony was in the wrong, provoking the situation and not acting in self-defense. Though specific identities cannot be revealed because the witnesses are minors, Texas bureau chief for The Daily Mail, MaryAnn Martinez, posted on Friday that four out of the six teens who testified were black.

We have now heard from six teens who were at the stadium the day Austin Metcalf was stabbed by Karmelo Anthony. Four out of the six are black . All have testified that Karmelo Anthony was asked to leave the Memorial HS team tent, provoked Austin Metcalf, and pulled a knife… https://t.co/5pQh7S83Zm

— MaryAnn Martinez (@MaryAnnreports) June 5, 2026

In an emotional moment, one witness who knew both Anthony and the slain teen broke down crying about the murder, saying of Austin, “That was my brother, that was my brother that got stabbed.” Investigative journalist Sarah Fields, who was in the courtroom, said the teen was asked if this was about race, to which he responded, “No, Austin was a leader and he protected us.” Fields also noted while reporting the testimony, “A large majority of these witnesses are not white.”

Part three of thread pic.twitter.com/4AGJVlhM3p

— Sarah Fields (@SarahisCensored) June 7, 2026

Martinez reported that one student, who is black, “wanted to attack Anthony” after the stabbing. “The teammate explained that he was on the football team with Austin and he considered him family,” Martinez said.

New state witness Vincent Cooper, a coach at Frisco ISD, is now testifying how he was assigned to manage Karmelo Anthony after the stabbing and stop him from leaving the football stadium. Later, Cooper was asked to calm down a teammate of Austin Metcalf (pictured below) who was… pic.twitter.com/NwwwB003dZ

— MaryAnn Martinez (@MaryAnnreports) June 4, 2026

Notably, the defense team unsuccessfully objected when the jury was selected since no one on the jury is black. Supporters of Anthony outside the courthouse have also made racial remarks and denigrated Metcalf.

Anthony provoked the encounter

The defense team is offering a self-defense narrative, saying that Anthony was under Metcalf’s school’s track tent to seek shelter from bad weather. Some witnesses, however, say Anthony was asked to leave up to 15 times by different people and refused. He insulted the school’s football team, called those under the tent “p*ssies,” and called Metcalf a “b*tch,” according to testimony.

Anthony threatened Metcalf, who told him, “I’m not going to fight you at a track meet, bro,” a witness said, according to Fields’ reporting. Anthony fatally stabbed the teen after Metcalf softly pushed or shoved him.

Additionally, some witnesses said Anthony was not fully sheltered beneath the tent before the confrontation, suggesting he wasn’t merely seeking shelter from hard rain. Others also said heavy rainfall occurred after the stabbing.

Defense witness says Anthony was wrong

In another key moment for the prosecution, a witness who was called to testify by the defense team on Saturday plainly stated that Anthony was “in the wrong.” The following exchange, reported by NBC DFW, is between a teenage defense witness and Bill Wirskye, the lead prosecutor:

“You didn’t expect for there to be a stabbing?” Wirskye asked.

“No, sir,” the witness answered.

[…]

“Who was in the wrong that morning?” Wirskye asked.

“I think Karmelo was in the wrong,” the witness answered.

“Karmelo provoked this, didn’t he?” Wirskye asked.

“Yes, sir,” the witness answered.

The defense will continue to call witnesses to the stand on Monday.

Related: Race Narrative Kicked Into Overdrive After Jury Selected In Austin Metcalf Murder Trial