Karmelo Anthony, a 19-year-old Texas student, has been convicted of murderfor the fatal stabbing of rival 17-year-old track athlete Austin Metcalf during a high school meet and now faces a sentence of five years to life in prison.
Jurors in Collin County returned the guilty verdict on Tuesday after less than a week of testimony and deliberations in the closely watched trial in McKinney, Texas.
The jury rejected Anthony's claim that he acted in self-defense during a confrontation with Metcalf in the bleachers at a Frisco stadium last year, according to CNN.
Following the verdict, the judge revoked Anthony's bond and ordered him into the custody of the Collin County Sheriff's Office while the sentencing phase proceeds.
Prosecutors said Anthony, then 17, provoked the encounter before stabbing Metcalf once in the chest as other students looked on at the Apr. 2, 2025 track meet hosted by Frisco Independent School District.
According to an arrest report and witness statements summarized in court and investigative records, the dispute began when Metcalf told Anthony, who was with a rival team, to leave Memorial High School's team tent during rainy conditions.
A police report cited by prosecutors said Anthony replied, "Touch me and see what happens," as he reached into his bag for a knife before the stabbing.
Anthony was arrested on Apr. 2, 2025, and initially held on a murder charge before being released on a reduced bond and placed on house arrest later that month.
In June 2025, a Collin County grand jury indicted him for first-degree murder, a charge that in Texas carries a punishment range of 5 to 99 years or life in prison and an optional fine of up to $10,000, the Collin County DA reported.
Read more: Karmelo Anthony Murder Trial Will Not Include Black Jurors, Prosecutors Say Case Is 'Race-Neutral'
Texas law treats 17-year-olds as adults for criminal prosecution, allowing Anthony to be tried as an adult despite his age at the time of the offense.
The one-week trial featured testimony from student witnesses, law enforcement officers, and forensic experts who described the sequence of events in the stands and the fatal chest wound that killed Metcalf.
Prosecutors argued the stabbing was an unprovoked, deadly escalation, while the defense maintained that Anthony feared for his safety and responded to an immediate threat.
Jurors began deliberating late last week and reached their verdict in under three hours, according to local coverage of the proceedings.
Sentencing proceedings are underway, with jurors instructed that they may impose a punishment anywhere within the first-degree murder range, up to life in prison.
The court also advised jurors that Texas law permits consideration of factors such as Anthony's age at the time of the crime, his lack or presence of prior criminal history, and the circumstances of the confrontation.
A sentencing decision is expected in the coming days, and Anthony will remain in county custody until he is transferred to the state prison system to serve whatever term is imposed, as per ABC News.
