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With closing arguments looming on Tuesday, Karmelo Anthony’s defense rested without calling him to testify — a move that came as legal analysts questioned whether his self-defense claim will persuade jurors.
Anthony is charged with murder in the April 2025 stabbing death of 17-year-old Memorial High School athlete Austin Metcalf during a confrontation at a Texas high school track meet. Anthony admits he stabbed Metcalf but claims he acted in self-defense.
Anthony’s defense rested its case on Monday, setting the stage for closing arguments when court resumes at 9 a.m. local time Tuesday.
The case has drawn national attention, fueled by debate over Texas self-defense law, questions surrounding race, competing narratives about what happened beneath a Memorial High School team tent and demonstrations outside the Collin County courthouse.
Ritter: Defense faces uphill battle
As the defense case neared its conclusion Monday, an unexpected delay in proceedings fueled speculation about what was happening behind the scenes.
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Speaking on Fox News’ “The Story,” legal analyst Joshua Ritter suggested one possibility was that Anthony and his attorneys were discussing whether he should testify.
“Perhaps they’re talking to Karmelo Anthony about whether or not he wants to testify,” Ritter, a criminal defense attorney and Fox News contributor, said on Monday.
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No plea agreement materialized, and the defense ultimately rested without calling Anthony to the witness stand.
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Ritter suggested the defense may have been reassessing its strategy after several days of prosecution testimony.
“We’re hearing that the defense case may not be going as they had hoped and planned,” Ritter said.
According to Ritter, defense attorneys could have been searching for a final opportunity to strengthen Anthony’s position before the case reached the jury.
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“Perhaps they’re looking for some last-ditch effort to try to spare him a lifetime in prison,” he said.
Ritter later offered a blunt assessment of the competing cases presented to jurors.
“The prosecution case went very strongly. The defense case doesn’t look like it’s going well,” Ritter said.
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Rotunno: Self-defense claim may not hold up
Ritter was not the only Fox News legal analyst who questioned the strength of the defense’s case.
Speaking on Fox News’ “America Reports”, criminal defense attorney and Fox News contributor Donna Rotunno said testimony presented during the trial reinforced her belief that Anthony’s self-defense claim faces significant obstacles.
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“I never thought that this case rose to the level of self-defense,” Rotunno said. “This is a sad, awful, tragic circumstance where a young person made a really horrible decision, but decisions have consequences.”
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Rotunno pointed to testimony from multiple student witnesses, including one witness who agreed under questioning that Anthony had provoked the confrontation.
“That one question could really turn the tide here,” Rotunno said.
Rotunno also dismissed defense efforts to highlight testimony that the knife Anthony carried was legal under Texas law because its blade measured less than five inches.
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“Whether you could have the knife legally doesn’t mean that you could use it in the way that it was used,” she said.
Addressing testimony that athletes from different schools commonly interact at track meets, Rotunno said jurors are likely to focus less on whether Anthony was permitted under the Memorial High School tent and more on how he responded after being repeatedly asked to leave.
“He obviously didn’t want to leave,” Rotunno said. “I think they’re trying to show that he knew exactly what he was doing when he put his hand inside that bag.”
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What jurors heard
Prosecutors called 21 witnesses, including student athletes, police officers, investigators and the medical examiner.
Several students testified that Anthony was repeatedly asked to leave the Memorial High School tent before the confrontation escalated. Witnesses recalled Anthony telling Metcalf, “Touch me and you’ll find out” and “If you want me to move, you have to move me.”
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Multiple students testified that Metcalf did not appear to be looking for a fight. One witness recalled Metcalf saying, “I’m not going to fight you at a track meet.”
Defense attorneys countered by highlighting testimony that athletes from different schools routinely mingle at track meets, that Anthony was smaller than Metcalf and that witnesses gave differing accounts of the physical interaction immediately before the stabbing.
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National attention and courthouse tensions
The trial has unfolded amid demonstrations outside the Collin County courthouse. Supporters of Anthony have gathered throughout the proceedings carrying signs reading “Justice for Karmelo Anthony.”
Outside the courthouse Monday, Next Generation Action Network President Dominique Alexander urged Anthony supporters not to be “baited” into confrontations.
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“We do not support chaos. We do not support intimidation. We do not support threats,” Alexander said.
The defense has argued Anthony feared for his safety when he stabbed Metcalf. Prosecutors contend the evidence shows Anthony escalated a verbal dispute into a deadly encounter.
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The case now rests on competing versions of what happened beneath the Memorial High School tent and whether jurors believe Anthony’s actions were justified.
Fox News’ Brooke Taylor, Peter Cuddihy and Lindsey Reese contributed to this report.
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