KARMELO: VERDICT STANDS
The latest chapter in the Karmelo Anthony case did not go his way.
On August 22, retired District Judge Michael Chitty denied Anthony’s request for a new trial. That means his murder conviction and 35-year prison sentence remain in place for the 2025 stabbing death of 17-year-old Austin Metcalf at a Frisco high school track meet.
Anthony, 19, argued at trial that he acted in self-defense. The jury rejected that claim and convicted him in June.
His new legal team wanted the conviction thrown out. They questioned strict courtroom restrictions imposed by trial judge John Roach and argued that an off-the-record agreement between prosecutors and Anthony’s attorneys affected his decision not to testify.
That agreement was supposed to keep damaging background information about both teenagers out of court and keep the trial focused on what happened under the team tent. During the hearing, withheld allegations about both young men became public. The defense argued that a dispute over the agreement changed its trial strategy at the last minute. Prosecutors maintained that Anthony received a fair trial.
Roach was removed from handling the post-trial proceedings after the defense complained about a television interview in which he said the jury “got it right.” Chitty was then assigned to decide the new-trial motion. His order denied the request without offering a detailed explanation.
This is not necessarily the end. Anthony’s attorney, Russell Wilson, says the defense will continue pursuing relief through Texas’ Fifth Court of Appeals.
So the real question now is not whether the 35-year sentence disappeared. It did not. The question is whether an appeals court will find that the unusual courtroom restrictions, private agreements or Anthony’s decision not to testify denied him a fair trial. For now, the verdict stands, the sentence remains, and the legal appeals fight still continues.
