Texas Teen Convicted in Track-Meet Stabbing Seeks New Trial, Citing Unfair Judge

DALLAS (AP) — A Texas teenager sentenced to prison for fatally stabbing a fellow high school athlete in a crowded stadium is asking a judge to throw out the conviction, arguing he did not get a fair trial before a biased jurist.

Karmelo Anthony, now 19, was convicted of murder in June and sentenced to 35 years in connection with the death of 17-year-old Austin Metcalf at a track meet in Frisco. A Collin County jury rejected Anthony's self-defense claim after less than three hours of deliberation. His attorneys now want a new trial, and hearings on the request began Wednesday in suburban Dallas.

At the center of the motion is state District Judge John Roach. Anthony's legal team contends Roach imposed overly restrictive courtroom rules and gave jurors incomplete instructions before they began weighing the murder charge. The case drew widespread online attention, with social media posts framing the killing in racial terms — Anthony is Black and Metcalf was white — even as lawyers on both sides told the jury race was not a factor.

Evidence at trial painted a chaotic scene on a rainy spring day. Anthony, then a student at a different high school, had taken shelter under a tent set up for Memorial High School's team. Witnesses said Metcalf and other students repeatedly told him to leave, and the exchange became heated. According to a police report, Anthony reached into a bag and said, "Touch me and see what happens." When Metcalf pushed him, Anthony pulled out a knife and stabbed Metcalf in the chest.

Anthony did not testify in his own defense. Prosecutors described him as the aggressor, while the defense argued he acted in self-defense.

The retrial request faces a high legal bar, but the argument over jury instructions could give an appellate court something to weigh. If a judge's charge to the jury misstates the law on self-defense or leaves out a key element, it can be enough to overturn a conviction. The hearings also include a request to remove Roach from any future proceedings.