Karmelo Anthony should get a do-over trial with a different judge calling the shots this time, his new, high-powered defense team argued in a pair of court motions filed Tuesday.
Anthony’s attorneys made the demands in the appeal of his murder conviction for fatally stabbing fellow high school athlete Austin Metcalf.
The lawyers argued the conviction should be tossed altogether, claiming the now 19-year-old killer’s constitutional rights were violated because his first trial wasn’t fully accessible to the public.
They also claimed that prosecutors prevented him from testifying in his own defense, according to court documents obtained by TMZ.
If Anthony is granted a new trial, it should be overseen by a different judge, his lawyers insisted.
They also want Judge John Roach, who presided over the dramatic murder trial that ended last month, removed from all remaining post-trial proceedings.
In their recusal motion, the attorneys claimed that Roach showed bias against their client during post-verdict interviews, the outlet reported.
In those interviews, Roach defended his handling of the trial and “publicly endorsed” the guilty verdict, according to the defense – which argued those remarks made it “impossible” for him to fairly rule on any future motions in the case.
When asked during an interview with WFAA whether the jurors did the right thing, Roach replied, “Yes, they did, because they were picked based upon the law, they listened to the facts, it happened in this courtroom, and they got a verdict.”
Roach added that while he believed Anthony came off as a nice person in their brief interactions, the teen would have to live with the consequences of his actions.
“He seems like a nice young man who committed a crime and he understands today more than any day before the consequences of committing a crime like he did,” Roach told the outlet.
Anthony’s new defense team – which includes heavyweights including Texas NAACP president Gary Bledsoe, veteran appellate attorney Russell Wilson and civil rights lawyer Brooke Cluse from Ben Crump Law – joined forces last month with the goal of overturning his conviction and prison sentence.
They are reportedly working the case pro bono.
Anthony was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to 35 years in prison for fatally knifing Metcalf, 17, at a high school track meet in Frisco, Texas, in April 2025.
He filed a notice of appeal less than 24 hours after the verdict.
Anthony claimed in the filing written from lockup that he is a “penniless, destitute, and indigent person, too poor to employ counsel to represent me on the appeal” — despite his family collecting $625,000 in crowdfunding for his legal defense and “living expenses.”
Anthony and Metcalf clashed when Anthony was sitting in Metcalf’s team’s tent during a rain delay at a track meet.
Metcalf repeatedly told him to leave, but Anthony refused, warning, “Touch me and find out.”
Metcalf then pushed Anthony, who pulled out a knife and stabbed Metcalf in the chest, witnesses said.
Metcalf died in his twin brother’s arms.
Anthony’s attorneys claimed the stabbing was self-defense, but the jury ultimately convicted him of murder after just over two hours of deliberation.
As the case made national headlines, tensions escalated over race, with some of Anthony’s supporters trying to paint Metcalf, who was white, as a bully who targeted Anthony, who is black.
An appeal does not necessarily mean he will face a new trial, and it could take several months for the appeal process to run its course.
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