Karmelo Anthony’s Lawyer Wants $1M Bond Lowered Arguing Self-Defense In Austin Metcalf Murder Case

Police claim Anthony confessed, saying, 'I’m not alleged, I did it'

The lawyer for Karmelo Anthony, the Black teenager accused of fatally stabbing white Texas high school track star Austin Metcalf, wants his client’s $1 million bond to be lowered, arguing it could be a case of self-defense, the New York Post reports.

“I know that my client said it was self-defense,” Deric Walpole said. “I don’t have any reason to disbelieve that, but I need to develop facts, talk to people, and figure out what’s going on before I make any statements about what I think happened. I don’t have any reason to think it wasn’t self-defense at this time.”

Without making bond, Anthony has been in Collin County Jail since the fatal stabbing took place on April 2.

Metcalf, a junior at Memorial High School, allegedly asked Anthony, a student from Centennial High School, to leave Memorial’s pop-up tent during a rain delay. After Anthony refused, a witness claimed he unzipped a bag and told Metcalf, “Touch me and see what happens.”

Shortly after, Metcalf “grabbed Anthony to tell him to move and Anthony pulled out … a black knife and stabbed Austin once in the chest,” according to police. Metcalf’s twin brother, Hunter, rushed to the scene to try to save his brother.

Austin Metcalf died in his brother’s arms.

According to NBC DFW, Anthony fled the scene but was caught by police. When he was apprehended, the high school student allegedly confessed, telling one officer, “he put his hands on me, I told him not to.” He also asked if the victim was going to be OK.

Metcalf was remembered for being a stand-out athlete who had potential football college scholarships.

“My son and I are profoundly thankful for the overwhelming support, prayers, and love we have received,” Hunter Metcalf and his mother, Meghan, said in a statement. “Tragedies inevitably raise questions that remain unanswered. We will entrust the detectives handling the investigation to determine the circumstances surrounding Austin’s passing while our family, Hunter, and I prioritize commemorating and honoring Austin.

Anthony’s father, Andrew, is defending his son.

“He was not the aggressor,” he said. “He was not the one who started it. Everyone has already made their assumptions about my son, but he’s not what they’re making him out to be.”