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Family of Texas Teenager Accused of Killing Track Rival Has Raised More Than $80K for His Legal Defense

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Family of Texas Teenager Accused of Killing Track Rival Has Raised More Than $80K for His Legal Defense

The family of 17-year-old Karmelo Anthony has raised more than $85,000 in donations after he was charged with murder

Karmelo Anthony; Austin Metcalf X account
Karmelo Anthony; Auston Metcalf. Photo: Frisco Police Dept; Austin Metcalf/X

  • The family of 17-year-old Karmelo Anthony has raised more than $85,000 in donations for his legal defense
  • Anthony was charged with murder following the stabbing death of 17-year-old Austin Metcalf at a track meet in Frisco, Texas, on April 2
  • An attorney for Anthony has claimed that the stabbing was done in self-defense

The family of the Texas teenager accused of fatally stabbing a fellow high school track star has started a legal defense fund on his behalf.

In a fundraiser posted on GiveSendGo, the family of 17-year-old Karmelo Anthony — who was charged with murder following the death of 17-year-old Austin Metcalf on April 2 — wrote that the accusations against the teen were “false, unjust and harmful.”

“This is the Official Support Fund for Karmelo and his family during this challenging and difficult time,” the family’s message states. “The narrative being spread is false, unjust and harmful.”

“As a family of faith, we are deeply grateful for all of your support during this trying period. Your prayers and assistance mean more to us now more than ever,” the family adds.

As of Sunday, April 6, the fundraiser has garnered more than $85,000 in donations toward a $100,000 goal.

Karmelo Anthony
Karmelo Anthony’s mugshot.Frisco Police Dept.

Texas Teen Allegedly Confessed to Murdering High School Track Star, Then Asked Police if He Could Claim Self-Defense

Anthony and Metcalf were both at a track meet at Kuykendall Stadium in Frisco, Texas, when Anthony allegedly removed a knife from his backpack and stabbed Metcalf, who was pronounced dead by the time he arrived at the hospital, according to the Frisco Police Department.

Defense attorney Deric Walpole has since told local news outlet NBC 5 that Anthony stated he acted in self-defense.

“I know that my client said it was self-defense. 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,” Walpole told the outlet on Friday, April 4. “I don’t have any reason to think it wasn’t self-defense at this time.”

The defense attorney added that he is also asking a judge to lower Anthony’s $1 million bond.

Metcalf’s family has also established a fundraiser for their expenses, which has raised nearly $250,000 on GoFundMe since April 2.

“He was a bright young man with a great future ahead of him,” Metcalf’s father wrote in part about the late teen. “He was a leader of men. His smile would light up the room. His passion for football was unbelievable. Voted team MVP this past season and carried a 4.0 GPA. He was looking forward to taking his game to the next level.”

A copy of the probable cause affidavit in the case previously obtained by PEOPLE states that Anthony had distanced himself from the victim and other athletes when police arrived on the scene.

An arresting officer ordered the 17-year-old to put his hands up, at which time Anthony allegedly shouted: “I was protecting myself.”

Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up for PEOPLE’s free True Crime newsletter for breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases. 

Austin Metcalf X account
Austin Metcalf.Austin Metcalf/X

When the officer referred to Anthony as an “alleged suspect,” he seemingly admitted to the crime in response, allegedly saying, “I’m not alleged, I did it,” according to the affidavit.

“He put his hands on me. I told him not to,” Anthony told a police officer at one point, also asking authorities “if what happened could be considered self-defense,” the affidavit states.

An eyewitness told police that the confrontation between the two boys began when Metcalf asked Anthony to move out from under the tent that had been set up for members of his high school track team on the field that day.

Anthony then allegedly told Metcalf: “Touch me and see what happens.”

The eyewitness claimed that Metcalf touched Anthony, at which time Anthony allegedly told him to punch him and see what happens, according to the affidavit.

Metcalf then went to physically move Anthony, which is when Anthony allegedly pulled a knife out of his bag, stabbed Metcalf in the chest and fled from the tent, per the affidavit.

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Stories A teenage girl sitting by a window | Source: Midjourney A teenage girl sitting by a window | Source: Midjourney My Mother's Death Put Me in a Courtroom and a Home That Isn't Mine Prenesa Naidoo By Prenesa Naidoo Apr 16, 2025 05:25 P.M. Shareshare-button Seventeen-year-old Maeve survives the car crash that kills her mother, but the truth about that night haunts her. Sent to live with a father she doesn't quite know, a stepmother who tries too hard, and a baby brother she refuses to know... Maeve must decide: will she keep running from the past or finally face the truth and find where she belongs? Advertisement I don't remember the impact. Not really. I remember the rain. Light at first, then heavier, drumming against the windshield. I remember the sound of my mother's laugh, my fingers tapping absently against the steering wheel as I told her about Nate, the boy who sat two seats ahead of me in chemistry. Rain on a car window | Source: Midjourney Rain on a car window | Source: Midjourney I remember the way she glanced over, smirking. He sounds like trouble, Maeve. And I remember the headlights. Too close. Too fast. The next thing I remember is screaming for my mother. Advertisement A shocked teenage girl in a car | Source: Midjourney A shocked teenage girl in a car | Source: Midjourney I was outside the car. Somehow. I don't remember getting there. My knees were soaked in mud, my hands covered in blood that wasn't mine. Mom was lying on the pavement, her body twisted wrong, her eyes half-open, staring at nothing. I screamed her name until my throat burned. I tried to shake her awake, but she wouldn't move. Then... sirens. A police car on a road | Source: Midjourney A police car on a road | Source: Midjourney Advertisement Hands pulling me away. A voice saying something about a drunk driver. Another voice saying, "The mother was driving." I gasped, tried to tell them that it was me... but the words wouldn't come. The world spun, my stomach twisted, and then... Blackness. A paramedic standing in the rain | Source: Midjourney A paramedic standing in the rain | Source: Midjourney I wake up in a hospital bed. A dull, aching fog fills my skull. There's a nurse. Machines beeping. The distant murmur of voices in the hallway. My throat is dry. My limbs feel wrong. The door opens, and I expect to see my mom. For a horrible, fleeting second, I think maybe it was all just a dream. Advertisement But then my father steps in. A teenage girl in a hospital bed | Source: Midjourney A teenage girl in a hospital bed | Source: Midjourney Thomas. He looks older than I remember. The last time I saw him was... Christmas? Two years ago? I can't remember. He sits beside the bed, hesitating before placing a rough, unfamiliar hand on mine. "Hey, kid," he says. And just like that, I know this isn't a dream. She's really gone. A teenage girl in a hospital bed | Source: Midjourney A teenage girl in a hospital bed | Source: Midjourney Advertisement Two weeks later I wake up in a house that doesn't feel like mine. Julia is in the kitchen, humming. The smell of something earthy and vaguely sweet clings to the air. I stare at the bowl she sets in front of me. Oatmeal, topped with flaxseeds and blueberries. "I added some hemp hearts," she says, as if this is normal. "Hemp seeds are good for you, honey." As if my mother isn't dead and I haven't been dropped into this house with its bland beige walls and a baby I barely know. A bowl of oatmeal on a table | Source: Midjourney A bowl of oatmeal on a table | Source: Midjourney I pick up the spoon. Stare at it. Set it back down. Advertisement Julia watches, tucking a stray piece of hair behind her ear. "Not hungry, love?" I am hungry. Starving, even. But I don't want this. I want greasy diner waffles. I want to drive to Sam's Diner at midnight with my mom, splitting pancakes and laughing at the guy who always falls asleep in booth six. A woman sitting at a kitchen table | Source: Midjourney A woman sitting at a kitchen table | Source: Midjourney Instead, I shake my head and push the bowl away. Julia hesitates then she slides a protein ball across the table. It's some homemade concoction of dates and oats. Her olive branch, I guess? I don't take it. "Maeve," she sighs. "Your dad will be back soon. He went to get diapers for—" Advertisement I stand up before she can finish. I don't want to hear more. I don't want to know more. A bowl of protein balls | Source: Midjourney A bowl of protein balls | Source: Midjourney Court I stand in front of the mirror, surrounded by a pile of discarded clothes. The first dress is too formal. The second makes me look like a kid. The third is too tight, too wrong, too not me. What do you wear to watch the man who killed your mother sit on trial? I grab a simple black blouse. It reminds me of the morning of her funeral. Like how I sat on my bed, surrounded by every black item I owned, trying them on, ripping them off. A pile of black clothing on a bed | Source: Midjourney A pile of black clothing on a bed | Source: Midjourney Advertisement Nothing felt right. Nothing could make me feel ready to bury her. I remember standing in front of the mirror that morning, staring at my reflection with swollen, puffy eyes. My hands shook as I buttoned a satin blouse I'd never worn before. Mom would have told me that it didn't matter. "They'd be too busy looking at that beautiful smile on your face," she'd say. "Or that gorgeous hair." But I wasn't dressing for them. I was dressing for her. A teenage girl standing in front of a mirror | Source: Midjourney A teenage girl standing in front of a mirror | Source: Midjourney Now, I do up the same buttons with fingers that tremble just as much. I want justice. I want Calloway to pay. But in the back of my mind, guilt whispers: I didn't see him in time. Advertisement I squeeze my eyes shut. I try to breathe. Then I grab my blazer, straighten my shoulders, and walk out of the door. Justice first. Guilt later. A black blazer | Source: Midjourney A black blazer | Source: Midjourney The courtroom is too cold, and the seat beneath me is stiff. The man sitting across from me, the one who killed my mother, stares down at his folded hands. His suit is wrinkled. His jaw is unshaven. He doesn't look sorry. Calloway. He had been drunk. He had already lost his license once. He shouldn't have been behind the wheel. Advertisement The exterior of a courthouse | Source: Midjourney The exterior of a courthouse | Source: Midjourney I want him to look at me. I want him to see what he's done. The lawyer calls my name. My throat tightens as I step forward. The room tilts slightly as I sit. My pulse hammers in my ears. "Can you tell us what happened that night, Maeve?" I should say I don't remember the impact. I should say that we were talking about stupid things... about boys and pizza and the rain, until the headlights came. A lawyer standing in a courtroom | Source: Midjourney A lawyer standing in a courtroom | Source: Midjourney Advertisement Instead, I swallow back the bile and inhale. "We were on our way home. Then he hit us," I say. I wait for the next question. But it doesn't come from my lawyer. It comes from his. A woman with sharp eyes and an even sharper voice. A teenager in a courtroom | Source: Midjourney A teenager in a courtroom | Source: Midjourney "Maeve, who was driving?" I go still. There's a pause. Too long. "Your mother, correct?" She tilts her head. I don't say anything. I just nod. But something shifts inside me. Advertisement A memory. The keys are in my hand. The feeling of the steering wheel under my fingers. The headlights. An upset girl | Source: Midjourney An upset girl | Source: Midjourney Oh, my God. No. No, that's not right. Is it? The memory was coming back. The brain fog was lifting... suddenly, the true events were coming back to me. Everything had been hazy since I left the hospital. I was focusing on the loss of my mother, rather than the accident... I glance at my father. His forehead creases. He shifts forward slightly, confusion flickering across his face. I want to run. I want to vanish. "I don't know..." comes out of my mouth instead, so quietly that I'm not sure anyone hears. Advertisement A man sitting in a courtroom | Source: Midjourney A man sitting in a courtroom | Source: Midjourney The Truth That night, I'm sitting in my room, staring at the ceiling. The air is thick, suffocating. But the memory won't leave me. I see it now. Clear as day. Mom smiling as she handed me the keys. "You dragged me out of the house to fetch you, Mae," she'd said. "So, you drive, kiddo. I'm tired." A woman standing next to a car | Source: Midjourney A woman standing next to a car | Source: Midjourney Advertisement The warmth of the leather beneath my hands. Laughing together. The rain, getting heavier... And then, those headlights. I was driving. It was me. A cold, sick feeling twists inside me. I feel like I might throw up. A teenage girl sitting on her bed | Source: Midjourney A teenage girl sitting on her bed | Source: Midjourney I find my father in the living room. He looks up from the couch, his eyes weary, a glass of something amber in his hand. "I need to tell you something," I say. He nods slowly. Waits. "What's up, Maeve?" Advertisement I sit across from him. The words stick thickly against my throat. "I was driving." He says nothing. He doesn't even blink. A man sitting on a couch | Source: Midjourney A man sitting on a couch | Source: Midjourney I swallow hard. "She... she let me take the wheel. She was tired so because I asked her to fetch me, she gave me the keys... We were talking about... life, and then the rain started, and I didn't see him, Dad. I didn't see him until he was right there." My voice breaks. My breath comes in short, sharp gasps. I can't breathe. His glass clinks as he sets it down. I expect him to yell. To tell me it's my fault. Instead, he reaches for me. Advertisement And I break. A glass of whiskey on a table | Source: Midjourney A glass of whiskey on a table | Source: Midjourney The sobs come fast, violent, shaking my whole body. I fold into him, the weight of it all crushing me. His arms tighten around me, and for the first time in years, I let him hold me. "It wasn't your fault, Maeve." His voice is rough, thick with something I've never heard before. "It wasn't your fault." I want to believe him. God, I really want to believe him. "Go to sleep, Maeve," my father says. "Just sleep it off, and we'll talk about it tomorrow." A crying girl | Source: Midjourney A crying girl | Source: Midjourney Advertisement We hear Julia in the kitchen. Probably making another batch of those protein balls. "Okay... Dad," I mutter and walk away. I stop at the top of the stairs. Below, the kitchen light spills into the hallway, a soft yellow glow against the dark. I hear voices, low and tired. A bowl of chopped dates | Source: Midjourney A bowl of chopped dates | Source: Midjourney My father and Julia. I step closer. I shouldn't listen. I know I shouldn't. But then... "She told me, Jules," he says. "She was driving." I stop breathing. A cold, sharp feeling spreads through me like ice in my veins. Advertisement Silence. A girl standing on a staircase | Source: Midjourney A girl standing on a staircase | Source: Midjourney Then the soft clink of a spoon against ceramic. Julia's kombucha, probably. She drinks it every night, swearing it does something for digestion. I don't know why I focus on that, except that it's easier than focusing on what my father just said. "Mara gave her the keys," he continues. His voice is rough, like he hasn't slept. "Maeve had been out. Asked her mother to pick her up from a friend's house." There's a long, heavy pause. An upset teenager in a hallway | Source: Midjourney An upset teenager in a hallway | Source: Midjourney Advertisement "If she hadn't asked... if Mara had just driven them home..." He doesn't finish. My fingers curl around the banister. My nails dig into the wood. I've had that thought a thousand times. If I hadn't called. If I hadn't needed a ride. If I hadn't gotten into that car... Julia speaks carefully, as if she's gently choosing every word. A concerned woman in her pajamas | Source: Midjourney A concerned woman in her pajamas | Source: Midjourney "You can't think like that, Thomas," she says. "Can't I?" he counters. There's a bitter chuckle and the sound of a chair scraping. Advertisement My father exhales, slow and heavy. Like something inside him is breaking. "I look at her, and I... Look, I love her, I do. But she's... a stranger to me, Julia." A man sitting at a kitchen table | Source: Midjourney A man sitting at a kitchen table | Source: Midjourney My breath catches. I've already lost one parent. But something about hearing my father speak like this... makes me feel like I'm about to lose another. "Sharing a birthday every other year? A Christmas? That's not a father... That's a..." his voice falters. "I wasn't there for her." The words hit me like a fist to the ribs. I press my forehead against the wall. My chest aches. My father loves me. I know he does. Advertisement But love doesn't erase distance. It doesn't make two people know each other. It doesn't fill the years of absence. And right now, I don't know if it ever will. A teenager leaning against a wall | Source: Midjourney A teenager leaning against a wall | Source: Midjourney The Letter I still have the weekend before going back to the courthouse to hear the final verdict. But after overhearing my father and Julia the night before, I don't know how to exist. I'm in bed when I hear Julia in the hallway. She's carrying Duncan, who's been screaming for someone to pick him up. "Momma's here, sweet boy," she coos. "Did you think I wasn't coming to get you? Momma will always get you..." Advertisement An upset little boy | Source: Midjourney An upset little boy | Source: Midjourney Her voice trails off as the baby coos loudly, followed by a series of Julia's kisses on his face. I miss that. Knowing that my mother would be there for me at any moment. That she would be there to catch me every time I fell. Now? I have a father who loves me but struggles to see me. A smiling woman | Source: Midjourney A smiling woman | Source: Midjourney Advertisement I don't know how I'm going to spend the weekend, but I know that I'll be staying in my room. Maybe go through the trunk of my mother's belongings. She was always putting her important things into it. "One day, when everything else is gone, Maeve," she'd say. "We'll only have little things that tie us to great memories. You'll find most of them here, in this trunk. For me, anyway." I don't want to read the letter. I don't even want to hold it. But when I found it in the green velvet box, I couldn't put it back. There's just something about touching my mother's things that makes me feel... alive. A wooden trunk in a bedroom | Source: Midjourney A wooden trunk in a bedroom | Source: Midjourney The paper is soft with age, the edges curled from time. My mother's handwriting tilts slightly to the right, looping and delicate. It's so familiar that it hurts. Advertisement I should put it back. But my hands tremble as I unfold it. And I read. A girl reading a letter | Source: Midjourney A girl reading a letter | Source: Midjourney Thomas, I don't know why I'm writing this. Maybe because you'll never read it. Maybe because I'm tired. Or maybe because Maeve is asleep upstairs, and I just kissed her goodnight. And for the first time in a long time, I wondered if I made the right choice. She's brilliant, Thomas. Stubborn and messy and so, so alive. And I wonder... Are you finally ready? Could you be her father the way she needs you to be? I don't know. I won't ask. But I do know this: she'll be sixteen soon. And she still has time. So much time. And maybe, if you try, she'll let you in. Advertisement Mara A piece of paper on a bed | Source: Midjourney A piece of paper on a bed | Source: Midjourney My breath catches. Mom wrote it almost over a year ago. The ink is smudged in places like she hesitated to put down exactly what she felt... like she almost stopped herself from writing it at all. She thought about this. She wondered. I press my hand over my mouth, squeezing my eyes shut. She was supposed to know everything. She was supposed to be right about everything. But she wasn't. She had doubts. And if she had doubts, then maybe I can, too. Maybe my father was ready to be there for me... Advertisement A girl laying on her bed | Source: Midjourney A girl laying on her bed | Source: Midjourney I exhale, staring at the trunk in front of me. Her things. The pieces of her life. I let my gaze drift around the room. This room that doesn't feel like mine. The walls are blank. The shelves are empty. It's like I've been waiting for an escape hatch to appear, waiting for the moment to decide that I don't belong here and mean it. But what if I stopped waiting? What if I stayed? I think about Duncan's tiny fingers wrapped around mine. I haven't allowed myself to be with him yet, but I'd love to. I think about Julia standing in the kitchen with her healthy food and strange optimism. I think about my father, sitting on the porch night after night, carrying his own ghosts. Advertisement Maybe there's still time... A happy baby boy | Source: Midjourney A happy baby boy | Source: Midjourney The Verdict Calloway takes a plea deal. Less prison time, but a full admission of guilt. It doesn't feel like justice. It doesn't feel like anything. But as I stand in front of my mother's portrait, I whisper the words I never got to say: "I'm so sorry, Mom. I love you. I miss you." And for the first time since the crash, I feel like she hears me. A close up of a smiling woman | Source: Midjourney A close up of a smiling woman | Source: Midjourney Advertisement Healing, Slowly Julia doesn't say anything about the trial. But the next morning, there's a plate of waffles on the table. Real ones. With syrup. And butter. I stare at them. Then at her. She shrugs, sipping her green tea. "I caved," she says. "Don't tell the other vegans." A plate of waffles | Source: Midjourney A plate of waffles | Source: Midjourney Something unexpected tugs at the corner of my mouth. A smile. Small, but real. Julia sees it. She doesn't say anything. She just smiles back. I pick up my fork. Maybe, just maybe, this house could start to feel like home. Advertisement "You need to do something," Julia says, as if reading my mind. "Do something that's going to make this house feel like home. Plant your mom's favorite flowers so that you can see them and think of her." "Okay," I say quietly. "I like that idea." A flowerbed of carnations | Source: Midjourney A flowerbed of carnations | Source: Midjourney But before I do anything else, I have to speak to my father. We need to clear the air if I'm going to... heal. I find my father outside, sitting on the porch steps. The air is cool, carrying the faint scent of Julia's weird lavender candles. She lights them everyday, swearing they calm the energy of the house. I used to roll my eyes, but now? Advertisement A few weeks of being here and I don't mind it so much. I sit beside him. He glances over, surprised. "Did I disappoint you, Dad?" Lavender candles on a table | Source: Midjourney Lavender candles on a table | Source: Midjourney "What? Maeve! Never! I was just... shocked when you told me the truth. You had hidden it from everyone." "I didn't hide it, Dad," I say. "Not at first. I genuinely didn't remember what happened. We were in the car, there were headlights, and then the next thing I remember was being on the ground with Mom. But the memories have been coming back... It was a mistake." He sighs deeply. Advertisement A man sitting on a porch | Source: Midjourney A man sitting on a porch | Source: Midjourney "I know, baby," he says. "I think I just wasn't prepared to be a father to you. Of course, I'm your dad. But I've been your father from the sidelines, never up close. And now, this? It caught me off guard. And I didn't know how to help you with the loss." "I'm helping myself," I say weakly. "I know," he sighs. "But that's my job, Maeve. Mom would want me to help you. But I've been doing a pretty lousy job of it." I stare ahead, my fingers twisting in my lap. The words feel heavy, like stones in my chest. But I say them anyway. "I want to start over," I say. Advertisement A girl sitting on a porch | Source: Midjourney A girl sitting on a porch | Source: Midjourney I expect hesitation, skepticism. Instead, something in my father's face softens. "I've been awful," I admit. The words sting on the way out, but I don't take them back. "To you. To Julia... But especially to Duncan. I haven't picked him up once. I haven't played with him. He's a baby, he doesn't deserve that." My throat tightens. "He deserves better. I'll be better." "You don't have to be perfect, Maeve," my father says. "Just be here." A dinosaur mural in a nursery | Source: Midjourney A dinosaur mural in a nursery | Source: Midjourney Advertisement I blink fast, nodding before the tears can spill. "I want to paint a mural in his room," I say. I don't know where the idea came from, but it feels right. "Something fun. Dinosaurs, maybe. And I'm going to learn how to make vegan curry with Julia. I mean, I'll hate it, but still." My dad shakes his head, chuckling. And then, hesitantly, he pulls me into his arms. And this time, I let him. For the first time in a long time, I let myself believe. Maybe, just maybe... this life won't be so bad after all.

Stories A teenage girl sitting by a window | Source: Midjourney A teenage girl sitting by a window

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