Prosecutor tells jury that teen's killing at a Texas track meet was
murder, not self-defense
[June 05, 2026]
By JAMIE STENGLE
MCKINNEY, Texas (AP) — Prosecutors told jurors Thursday that a Texas
teenager competing at a high school track meet provoked a 17-year-old
athlete from a rival team before fatally stabbing him in the stadium's
bleachers as other students looked on.
An attorney for Karmelo Anthony said his client did not instigate the
fight with Austin Metcalf, telling the jury at the start of a packed
murder trial near Dallas that it was instead an act of self-defense.
Anthony pleaded not guilty over last year's stabbing, which stunned an
affluent suburb where the pair attended school. The death last year
quickly drew wide attention, in part because of social media posts that
amplified the case in racial terms. Anthony, now 19, is Black, while the
Metcalf was white.
According to an arrest report, Anthony told police he was protecting
himself when the two got into a confrontation during the meet in Frisco,
a fast-growing city is dotted by dozens of modern-looking school
campuses and gleaming athletic facilities.
But prosecutor Bill Wirskye told jurors it was a “senseless murder” and
not a case of self-defense. He called it a “sneak, surprise attack” and
said Anthony “knows he goaded the murder.”
“He didn’t want a fight,” Wirskye said of Metcalf.
The jury was seated this week under increased courthouse security and a
Collin County judge set strict rules over the proceedings, including
prohibiting attorneys from discussing the case publicly. Dozens of
people lined up to get a seat in the courtroom Thursday.
The stabbing happened on a rainy morning in April 2025. Witnesses told
police the confrontation began when Anthony sat under a tent belonging
to Metcalf's team, according to an arrest report. The teens went to
different schools in Frisco.
When Metcalf told Anthony that he needed to move, Anthony reached inside
his bag and allegedly replied: “Touch me and see what happens,” the
report said.
A short time later, Metcalf allegedly grabbed Anthony, who then pulled
out a knife and stabbed him in the chest, the report said.
Robert Starr, a track coach at Memorial High School, where Metcalf was a
student and athlete, explained to jurors that a tent at a track
competition “marks your spot” and is similar to a team bench in other
sports.
“You just don’t go into someone else’s tent uninvited,” Starr testified.
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Supporters for Karmelo Anthony demonstrate in front of the Collin
County courthouse Thursday, June 4, 2026, in McKinney, Texas. (AP
Photo/Tony Gutierrez)
In his opening remarks, defense attorney Mike Howard said it was
Metcalf who made the first contact.
“In that split second, Melo has a decision to make: how and when to
act,” Howard said.
"Self-defense is useless if you wait too late to defend yourself.
... He reacts in a split second of fear, chaos,” Howard said.
Starr told the jury that he rushed to the tent when he saw
commotion.
“I see Austin on the ground and his face is purple, and he has a big
hole in his chest,” the coach said, choking up in the witness chair.
Another area track coach, Vincent Hooper, testified that he put his
arm around Anthony and asked what had happened.
Anthony replied that he stabbed someone who had "put his hands on
me,” Hooper recalled.
Anthony faces up to life in prison if convicted of murder.
The parents of both teens have said they were good students who
planned to go to college. Metcalf's father has condemned those who
seized on the race of the teenagers after the killing.
“This was not a race thing. This is not a political thing. Please do
not comment if you do not know what happened,” Jeff Metcalf said on
Fox News' “America Reports.”
“This is a human being thing,” he said. “This person made a bad
choice and it affected both his family and my family forever.”
Authorities have also issued warnings about online discussions
surrounding the killing. Frisco Police Chief David Shilson urged
people last year to beware of posts spreading “misinformation, hate,
fear, and division."
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Associated Press writer Ed White in Detroit contributed.
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