Judge will consider new trial for Karmelo Anthony in Texas track meet killing

Judge will consider new trial for Karmelo Anthony in Texas track meet killing 0 seconds of 38 secondsVolume 0% Press shift question mark to access a list of keyboard shortcuts Keyboard ShortcutsEnabledDisabled Shortcuts Open/Close/ or ? Play/PauseSPACE Increase Volume↑ Decrease Volume↓ Seek Forward→ Seek Backward← Captions On/Offc Fullscreen/Exit Fullscreenf Mute/Unmutem Decrease Caption Size- Increase Caption Size+ or = Seek %0-9 Next Up Long-awaited trial begins in rapper Tupac Shakur's 1996 killing in Las Vegas 00:31 Subtitle Settings OffEnglish(US)_v Font Color White Font Opacity 100% Font Size 100% Font Family Arial Character Edge None Edge Color Black Background Color Black Background Opacity 50% Window Color Black Window Opacity 0% Reset WhiteBlackRedGreenBlueYellowMagentaCyan 100%75%50%25% 200%175%150%125%100%75%50% ArialCourierGeorgiaImpactLucida ConsoleTahomaTimes New RomanTrebuchet MSVerdana NoneRaisedDepressedUniformDrop Shadow WhiteBlackRedGreenBlueYellowMagentaCyan WhiteBlackRedGreenBlueYellowMagentaCyan 100%75%50%25%0% WhiteBlackRedGreenBlueYellowMagentaCyan 100%75%50%25%0% 00:00 00:38 00:38 More Videos 00:31 Long-awaited trial begins in rapper Tupac Shakur's 1996 killing in Las Vegas 00:54 Trump asks Supreme Court to let White House ballroom construction continue during appeal 00:59 AP Top Stories August 14 01:13 Preserving China’s imperial cuisine, one dish at a time 00:33 Student kills classmate and himself in high school shooting in southern Philippines, authorities say 01:59 Colde says new single is a message to himself to stop hesitating 00:41 Russia holds Ploughing Championship 00:41 Frank Beard, ZZ Top drummer, dies at 77 Close 1 of 6 | The trial judge who presided over the case of Texas teenager convicted of fatally stabbing a 17-year-old athlete at a high school track meet was ordered removed from the case as the defendant seeks a new trial and appeals his conviction. 2 of 6 | Supporters of Karmelo Anthony chant as they pose for photos outside the Collin County Courthouse after Judge John Roach Jr. was recused from the next phase of Anthony’s murder trial, Wednesday, Aug. 19, 2026, in McKinney, Texas. (Elías Valverde II/The Dallas Morning News via AP) 3 of 6 | A courtroom sketch provided by Pat Lopez shows Karmelo Anthony, center, at the defense table, the jury on the left and the presiding judge on the right, June 4, 2026, in McKinney, Texas, during the trial of a teen accused of fatally stabbing another during a track meet in suburban Dallas last year. (Pat Lopez via AP, File) 4 of 6 | Supporters of Karmelo Anthony react after Judge John Roach Jr. was recused from the next phase of Anthony’s murder trial outside the Collin County Courthouse on Wednesday, Aug. 19, 2026, in McKinney, Texas. (Elías Valverde II/The Dallas Morning News via AP) 5 of 6 | This booking photo provided by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice on Tuesday, Aug. 18, 2026, shows Karmelo Anthony. (Texas Department of Criminal Justice via AP) 6 of 6 | The Collin County Courthouse stands in McKinney, Texas, Wednesday, Aug. 19, 2026. (Elías Valverde II/The Dallas Morning News via AP) By JAMIE STENGLE Updated 6:02 AM MESZ, August 20, 2026 Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit McKinney, Texas (AP) — A judge on Thursday will consider whether to grant Texas teenager Karmelo Anthony a new trial following his murder conviction earlier this summer in the stabbing death of a 17-year-old athlete at a high school track meet. In a legal victory for Anthony, the judge who presided over his trial was removed from the case Wednesday. Judge Michael Chitty was then assigned to consider the motion from Anthony’s attorneys asking for a retrial in killing of Austin Metcalf. Anthony, now 19, was sentenced to 35 years in prison in the case. He attended Wednesday’s hearing wearing a green prison jumpsuit. His parents and Metcalf’s also attending the hearing. Anthony’s attorneys had asked for state District Judge John Roach to be removed in part because of a TV interview in which Roach said jurors “got it right” when they delivered a guilty verdict. In seeking a new trial, Anthony’s attorneys have argued that the June proceedings were marred by strict courtroom rules and improper jury instructions. They have also said Anthony’s decision to not testify came after a dispute with prosecutors over an agreement to focus the trial on the events leading up to the stabbing. Jurors in the trial had rejected Anthony’s claims he acted in self-defense during a confrontation with Metcalf in the stadium bleachers last year. Students who took the stand described a heated exchange over Anthony’s refusal on a rainy spring day to leave a tent that belonged to Metcalf’s team. Judge removed from Texas track meet killing case as Karmelo Anthony seeks new trial 3 MIN READ Lindsay Clancy goes on trial over whether postpartum psychosis drove her to kill her 3 children 2 MIN READ Judge moves Alex Murdaugh retrial from small county, but motion to toss out case will wait 2 MIN READ The case attracted national attention in part because of a flood of social media posts that amplified the killing in racial terms. Anthony is Black; Metcalf was white. Lawyers on both sides, however, told jurors the tragedy had nothing to do with race. During the recusal hearing Wednesday, Anthony’s legal team focused on comments Roach made to a Dallas TV station after the trial had ended. In the interview, which was played as the hearing began, Roach was asked if the jury got “it right.” “Yeah, they did,” Roach said, adding: “Whatever they say, they got it right.” During the interview, Roach also defended his courtroom rules and spoke about the onslaught of online postings about the case. As national attention on the killing intensified last year, the families of both Metcalf and Anthony said they had been targets of harassment. Several schools were competing at the track event when Anthony sat under the Memorial High School tent that was perched in the bleachers. Metcalf and others had repeatedly told Anthony to leave, witnesses testified, leading to an escalating confrontation. Prosecutors said Anthony provoked Metcalf, and witnesses testified that Anthony was the aggressor. Anthony at one point reached inside a bag and replied: “Touch me and see what happens,” according to a police report. Metcalf pushed Anthony, according to witnesses, who said Anthony then pulled out a knife and stabbed him in the chest.