Murdered Austin Metcalf's father reveals heartbreaking injustice in Karmelo Anthony case that will never be rectified... and the courtroom moment delusional killer's mask slipped

By MARYANN MARTINEZ, US TEXAS BUREAU CHIEF Published: 22:40, 15 July 2026 | Updated: 22:40, 15 July 2026 It took a Texas jury less than three hours to convict Karmelo Anthony of murdering 17-year-old Austin Metcalf. After a week of testimony, including evidence that left at least one juror visibly gasping, the guilty verdict was swift and decisive.  Now, a family confidante has revealed to the Daily Mail that the 19-year-old defendant believed he was on track to walk free, and that the verdict and his 35-year prison sentence came as a devastating shock. Dallas activist Dominique Alexander, a friend and advocate for the Anthony family since the fatal stabbing in Frisco, Texas, in April 2025, said he believes the teenager never expected to be convicted. 'At the end of the day, you got your attorney saying, "It's all right, it's all right. We got this, we got this,"' Alexander told Daily Mail. '[Anthony was] just believing in the process. [You have to think about his] mindset… this is a baby,' he added, referring to Anthony's age (he was also 17 at the time of the killing). But his confidence shattered the moment the verdict was read. Wearing a gray suit, white shirt and yellow tie, Anthony erupted with emotion as the jury in Collin County, a Dallas suburb, found him guilty of murder.  Karmelo Anthony, who is being held at a prison an hour outside of Houston after his murder conviction for the death of Austin Metcalf Austin Metcalf, who was fatally stabbed at a high school track meet in Frisco, Texas in April 2025 He remained inconsolable throughout the three-hour recess before jurors returned to decide on his punishment.  Just before they re-entered the courtroom, Anthony openly wept and trembled at the defense table, requiring his lawyers to console and steady him by putting their hands on his back. When jurors sentenced him to 35 years in prison, he began crying hysterically again. 'When he heard that 35 years... it rocked him. It finally hit home,' Metcalf's father, Jeff Metcalf, told the Daily Mail. 'I think they all believed their pipe dream fantasy. They just did not want to admit and look at the facts.' Multiple sources have also confirmed to the Daily Mail that Anthony had been expected to testify in his own defense before abruptly pulling out at the eleventh hour. The Memorial High School tent where Karmelo Anthony stabbed Austin Metcalf The knife used in the deadly stabbing, which was admitted into evidence during the trial Jeff Metcalf with his twin sons, Austin and Hunter Metcalf The decision was made on June 9, the day the defense rested its case. The reason remains unclear. Anthony's testimony would have been central in claiming that he acted in self-defense, allowing jurors to hear directly why he believed he feared for his life. Anthony fatally stabbed Metcalf during a rain delay at a high school track meet in Frisco on April 2, 2025. The confrontation began after Anthony, a student at Centennial High School, entered Memorial High School's team tent, where he was not supposed to be. Witnesses said Metcalf approached Anthony and told him to leave.  The verbal confrontation escalated and Metcalf, who was standing, leaned in to shove Anthony, who was seated on the bleachers. As Metcalf got close enough to Anthony to shove him, Anthony had a folding knife he had already opened hidden in his bag.  Anthony plunged it through Metcalf's breast plate and into his heart. Metcalf collapsed and bled to death on the stadium bleachers. Anthony admitted to police at the scene that he had stabbed Metcalf but claimed he acted in self-defense. It quickly became one of the most racially divisive cases in the country. Anthony's jail booking photo after he was arrested in April 2, 2025, in Frisco, Texas Metcalf, 17, was a football star and track athlete at Memorial High School in Frisco A courtroom sketch shows prosecutor Bill Wirskye pointing at Karmelo Anthony at the defense table in opening arguments Thursday, June 4, 2026, in McKinney, Texas Anthony's lawyers claimed he feared for his safety during the confrontation with Metcalf, who was around 55lbs heavier than Anthony and much taller. Anthony stands at 5ft 8in, while Metcalf was a 6ft 2in football linebacker.  But inside the courtroom, prosecutors presented a different picture. Over several days, jurors heard from dozens of student witnesses from multiple schools and racial backgrounds. With strikingly similar accounts, they testified that Metcalf was not trying to start a fight and had simply told Anthony to leave the tent before Anthony escalated the confrontation into deadly violence. With mounting testimony, it seemed the defense's strategy was building toward Anthony eventually taking the stand.  And, according to Jeff, prosecutors had told the Metcalf family that Anthony would testify. When the defense finished questioning its final witness, court broke briefly before Anthony was expected to take the stand. But the pause lasted longer than expected. 'That's when I said, "What's going on? Is he testifying?"' Jeff recalled asking prosecutors. He said they told him Anthony was 'up next.' 'So then [lawyers on both sides] were going back and forth and we were asking, "What is going on? What's happening?"' Anthony's parents, Andrew Anthony III and Kala Hayes, thank their supporters at a press conference shortly after their son killed Metcalf Dallas activist Dominique Alexander with Anthony's parents in April 17, 2025 Crowds outside the Collin County Courthouse in McKinney, Texas, for the Karmelo Anthony trial which lasted from June 1 - 9 Collin County District Attorney Greg Willis said justice was served in a short press conference following Karemlo Anthony's guilty verdict and sentencing on June 9, 2026 Jeff said prosecutors told him the defense was 'trying to get some stuff squared away.' When proceedings resumed, the defense unexpectedly rested its case without calling Anthony. Alexander confirmed there had been extensive discussions before the decision. 'I do know that there was a back and forth,' he said. Alexander said even he does not know why Anthony ultimately did not take the stand, and whether it was Anthony's decision, his attorney's or a combination. 'I think that one of the things that we found out was, is that Mike Howard (Anthony's lawyer) was having Karmelo making decisions that we feel like he probably didn't have, as a child, didn't have enough experience to make those critical decisions,' Alexander said. He added that Anthony's parents were not involved in the decision because Howard's client was Anthony alone. 'You have to remember, Karmelo is 19 years old, so Mike Howard's client is Karmelo Anthony, not his family,' he said. As Anthony sobbed following his conviction, his lawyers escorted him into a holding area outside the courtroom. His parents followed, with his mother also in tears. Anthony returned to hear his sentence, but his parents did not. They also missed the victim impact statements delivered moments later by Metcalf's family, as did several other Anthony relatives who had left the courtroom. Alexander claimed the family's private security team failed to tell them court had resumed. 'They were livid as hell when they found out that they were even doing the witness impact statement. They didn't have any idea of that,' he said. Anthony has since been transferred to the Wallace Pack Unit prison in Navasota, about an hour outside Houston, and is appealing his conviction. A team of attorneys is working pro bono to seek a new trial, although legal experts told the Daily Mail such appeals are a long shot and could take years to resolve. Jeff said his family wanted a longer sentence for Anthony and called their own sentence one that can never be appealed. Recalling comments made in court by his ex-wife, Meghan, he said his late son's loved ones had effectively been handed a life sentence. 'I mean, realistically, [Anthony's] out at 40 [years old],' Jeff said, referring to the possibility of early release. 'That's still plenty of life left for someone. As Meghan said, we were all handed a life sentence. That's what we were handed. My son will never walk through that door again and give me a hug ever. I'll never get to hear him call me "Pops" again.'