A spokesperson representing Karmelo Anthony’s family is calling out Austin Metcalf’s father after he used a national television interview to defend racist remarks he previously made about Anthony and his family.
Karmelo Anthony’s case has continued to draw national attention
Jeff Metcalf spoke publicly for the first time on ABC’s Good Morning America since a judge denied Anthony’s motion for a new trial in the April 2025 fatal stabbing of his son, Austin, at a Texas high school track meet. His comments prompted Dominique Alexander, founder of the Dallas-based Next Generation Action Network, to call out Metcalf directly over what his remarks reveal about how he views Anthony and his family.
“That’s his heart. That’s who he is as an individual,” Alexander told Atlanta Black Star.
In June, Blavity reported that Anthony, 19, was sentenced to 35 years in prison for fatally stabbing Austin. Despite being denied a new trial, Anthony’s legal team said they would keep fighting and plan to file another appeal.
What did Jeff Metcalf say in the interview?
Jeff said he does not believe Anthony’s conviction and lengthy prison sentence can amount to justice for his family, saying the loss of his 17-year-old son effectively left his family with a “life sentence.” Although Jeff said he has forgiven Anthony, he still believes he should be held accountable for Austin’s death.
“I got handed a life sentence,” Jeff told GMA. “We don’t ever get to see Austin again. We don’t get to talk to him, hug him.”
Jeff also used the interview to deny his own role in racializing the case, claiming instead that Anthony’s family and supporters were the ones who brought race into the conversation. He recalled attending a press conference held by Anthony’s family and spokesperson shortly after the killing, where he said he was asked to leave.
“I think that day is when race was really entered into it because at that — til that point, I never looked at it as a black and white thing,” Metcalf said. “It was a right and wrong thing. That’s all.”
Anthony’s attorney, Russell Wilson II, rejected that framing, saying questions about “racial fairness, equal treatment, public access, judicial impartiality, and the constitutional process” cannot simply be dismissed as the defense “bringing race into the case.”
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