Hours before the stabbing: Carmelo Anthony’s ex-girlfriend revealed the horrifying text messages she received, while he stated he was “quietly on the verge of losing control.”
New details about the hours immediately before a fatal high school stabbing emerged Thursday in a Collin County courtroom, offering a clearer picture of Karmelo Anthony’s state of mind on April 2, 2025.
That morning, Anthony’s former girlfriend went to an assistant principal at their Frisco school. She reported that the couple had broken up and that Anthony would not accept it. She said he was stalking her and would not take no for an answer. Less than two hours later, 17-year-old Anthony fatally stabbed 17-year-old Austin Metcalf during a confrontation under a tent at a track meet.
The same morning, Anthony sent his ex-girlfriend a photograph of a knife along with a text that read he was “lowkey on the verge.” Separate messages from him described fantasies of stabbing someone and licking the blood off the blade. Prosecutors described Anthony as spiraling in the period leading up to the incident, with a documented interest in fights, guns, and knives. He had previously attended a specialized program for young people who struggled to control their anger while his family lived in Louisiana.
These facts were never presented to the jury that convicted Anthony of murder in June 2026 and sentenced him to 35 years in prison. Both sides had reached an informal agreement before trial to exclude character evidence that risked further inflaming a case already marked by racial tension and public threats. The agreement kept the focus on the brief encounter itself.
Anthony, who is Black and attended Centennial High School, and Metcalf, who was White and attended Memorial High School, did not know each other. On a rainy afternoon, Anthony sat under a tent belonging to Metcalf’s team. He was told repeatedly to leave. Witnesses described an escalating argument. Anthony reached into his backpack and said, “Touch me and see what happens.” Metcalf then pushed him. Anthony pulled out a knife and stabbed Metcalf once in the chest. Metcalf died at the scene, held by his twin brother.
Anthony admitted the stabbing but claimed self-defense. The jury rejected that claim. The withheld evidence now sits at the center of his request for a new trial. His new lawyers argue the off-the-record agreement and related restrictions violated his constitutional rights and contributed to his decision not to testify.
The same agreement also kept out information about Metcalf, including a sealed juvenile record that involved fights and graffiti containing racist and antisemitic language. Prosecutors presented both sets of excluded material at the August 20 hearing to explain why the original trial was limited in scope.
A new judge is now considering the motion. The hearing continued after the original trial judge was recused. Any decision on a retrial faces a tight legal deadline.
The revelations do not change the basic sequence of the confrontation, but they add context to why Anthony brought a knife to a track meet and how quickly events unfolded after his ex-girlfriend’s report that morning. The case remains one of the most closely watched recent examples of youth violence in Texas, with both families still living under the shadow of the April 2025 incident.
