Karmelo Anthony stabbed a 17-year-old boy to death at a Texas track meet – and a jury sentenced him to 35 years.
Now his lawyers want a do-over.
And what prosecutors just showed a Texas courtroom explains exactly why Anthony's team fought so hard to keep this evidence buried.
The Texts Karmelo Anthony's New Trial Hearing Just Exposed
In October 2024 – months before he drove a knife into Austin Metcalf's chest – Karmelo Anthony sent a message describing what it would feel like to stab someone and lick their blood off the blade.
That text never reached the jury that convicted him.
Neither did the messages referencing guns, knives, and starting fights.
Neither did the photographs showing Anthony holding firearms.
Neither did the school disciplinary records documenting a history of violent altercations.
Neither did the fact that Anthony's girlfriend had just broken up with him that day, and that Anthony texted someone hours before the stabbing that he was "lowkey on the verge."
All of it was locked away under an unwritten agreement between Anthony's original defense team and prosecutors.
Lead prosecutor Bill Wirske told the court the deal was mutual – designed to keep inflammatory character evidence about both sides away from jurors.
Anthony's new lawyers say the agreement backfired by scaring Anthony off the stand, leaving his self-defense claim without a voice.
Why the Unwritten Agreement Could Cost Karmelo Anthony His New Trial
Here is what actually happened, based on testimony at the new-trial hearing.
Anthony's original defense team always planned for him to testify.
On the final day of trial, prosecutors said the deal would not protect Anthony if he took the stand – because the defense had already opened the door to character evidence by mentioning Anthony's chess club in opening statements.
Former defense attorney Toby Shook said the move caught him off guard, since the defense had always expected Anthony to tell the jury what happened under that tent.
The lawyers had never put the agreement in writing.
That was the fatal mistake.
An outside criminal defense attorney with no connection to the case told Fox News Digital that an unwritten deal affecting a defendant's right to testify is almost unheard of in a murder trial.
Without a written agreement, there was nothing to enforce.
Shook said Anthony ultimately chose not to testify because he feared prosecutors would seize any opening to introduce the blood-licking texts, the gun photos, and the school fight records.
The jury convicted him in June.
Thirty-five years.
Why the Left Wants Austin Metcalf's Killer Back in Court
Since Anthony's conviction, the left has done what the left always does.
They turned a convicted killer into a martyr.
GiveSendGo campaigns for Anthony's defense raised over $600,000.
Left-wing influencer Brian Krassenstein tried to spin the guilty verdict within hours, posting "Biased jury and corrupt judge?" to his followers.
Social media flooded with race-based outrage – despite the fact that Anthony's own lead prosecutor told the courtroom security threats forced extraordinary measures to protect everyone involved, including Anthony himself.
Austin Metcalf was 17 years old.
He went to a track meet.
He is not coming home.
Retired Judge Michael Chitty – who replaced the original judge after he was removed for publicly saying the jury "got it right" – must rule by Monday under Texas law.
If Chitty does not sign an order granting a new trial by that deadline, the motion is denied automatically and Anthony's direct appeal continues.
The left will call whatever happens next a travesty.
They always do when the facts don't cooperate.
Sources:
- Greg Wehner, "Karmelo Anthony new-trial fight reveals messages about knives, guns that murder jury never saw," Fox News, August 21, 2026.
- Staff, "Karmelo Anthony fantasized about stabbing, 'licking the blood off the blade': prosecutors," ABC News 4, August 20, 2026.
- Staff, "We Just Learned New Details About the Karmelo Anthony Case," Townhall, August 21, 2026.
- Matt Margolis, "The Karmelo Anthony Verdict and the Racialization of Everything," PJ Media, June 10, 2026.
- Staff, "God Help Us: Donations Continued to Roll in for Karmelo Anthony After He Was Convicted of Murder," The Western Journal, June 10, 2026.
- Bill Joseph, "Spare us: The Left's Predictable Meltdown Over Karmelo Anthony's Conviction," Self Reliance Central, June 12, 2026.
