Crime
Karmelo Anthony Brings on Powerhouse Attorneys to Fight in His Appeal in Austin Metcalf Murder
After Karmelo Anthony was found guilty in the murder of 17-year-old Austin Metcalf at a 2025 high school track meet, he immediately filed a notice to appeal the conviction.
On Monday, June 22, it was announced that the 19-year-old’s appeal team will include Russell Wilson with the Law Office of Russell Wilson II; Gary Bledsoe with the Bledsoe Law Firm PLLC and president of the Texas NAACP; Michael L. Ware with the Law Office of Michael Ware; Brooke Cluse with Ben Crump Law; Sean Daredia with the Daredia Law Firm; and Justin A. Moore with Stafford Moore PLLC, according to CBS News.
“Our appellate team has been retained following the conviction to conduct a fresh, independent review of the trial record,” the team said in a statement, according to the news outlet. “We recognize the profound loss suffered by one young man’s family and the uncertainty facing another, and we extend our respect to everyone whose lives have been forever changed by these events.”
“Our responsibility is to determine whether a legal error occurred and to ensure that every issue supported by the record is fully and vigorously presented on appeal,” the statement continued. “The appellate process exists for precisely this purpose.”
On June 9, Anthony was sentenced to 35 years in prison for fatally stabbing Metcalf at a high school track meet in Frisco, Texas, in April 2025 following a brief confrontation.
Last year, during the meet at Kuykendall Stadium, Metcalf pushed Anthony, who then pulled out a knife and stabbed him in the chest. Metcalf’s heart was reportedly pierced in the attack.
The case drew national attention due to the races of the two individuals involved. Anthony is Black, and Metcalf was white.
However, according to the Associated Press, lawyers on both sides said that race did not play a part in the incident. The jury rejected Anthony’s claims of self-defense.
A representative for Collin County Jail, where Anthony was sent after he was found guilty of murder, told TMZ that he was placed in isolation in a more secure area of the jail.
Attorney Mike Howard represented Anthony during his trial.
