The Aug. 20 hearing is the latest development in the murder case that has captured — and polarized — the nation.
By Jamie Landers, Sally Avila Edwards,
Dallas Morning News
https://www.dallasnews.com/
Karmelo Anthony will make his case next week for a new trial — and a Texas judge will have just three days to decide how the Frisco teen’s case will proceed.
The hearing for a new trial, scheduled for Aug. 20, is the latest development in the murder case that has captured — and polarized — the nation. Anthony, 19, was sentenced in June to 35 years in prison after a Collin County jury found him guilty of murder for the fatal stabbing of 17-year-old Austin Metcalf.
A new trial would give Anthony a clean slate, wiping out the old verdict and sentence. But for that to happen, a judge must find there was sufficient legal error in Anthony’s first trial — a high bar that’s hard to clear, according to legal experts who spoke with The Dallas Morning News.
Here’s what we know.
Where does Anthony’s case stand?
Anthony is serving his sentence at the Wallace Pack Unit, a prison just outside of Houston, as he awaits the next phase of his legal battle.
The teenager’s appellate team filed the motion for a new trial and recusal of the presiding judge shortly after he was convicted. On Aug. 19, the day before the motion for a new trial, Anthony’s team will attempt to remove District Judge John Roach Jr. from the case over public statements he made after sentencing.
The filings started a clock for the courts to issue a ruling. According to Texas law, trial courts have 75 days from sentencing to rule on a motion for a new trial, or the motion is automatically denied.
That deadline is coming up fast.
After the hearing for a new trial, the judge will have until Aug. 24 to reach a decision. The hearing also doesn’t yet have a judge — and won’t until the hearing to recuse wraps up.
It’s a “very compressed timeline” that Dallas criminal-appellate attorney Brett Ordiway, who isn’t involved in the case, said could complicate the hearing.
“If the recusal motion is granted, then that is going to be a very quick turnaround,” he said.
What warrants a new trial in Anthony’s case?
Anthony’s attorneys are relying on three main points to secure a new trial: Judge John Roach Jr.’s strict control over courtroom access, what they characterized as his incomplete jury instruction, and a broken “gentleman’s agreement” between the prosecution and defense over what details could be mentioned during the trial.
David Finn, a Dallas defense attorney and former criminal trial judge, wrote in an email to The News he believes the first point will be the most convincing line of argument for Anthony’s team.
During the June trial, Roach eliminated the overflow auxiliary viewing room without any on-the-record explanation, which Anthony’s appellate lawyers argue compromised his right to a fair and public trial.
“Texas law requires the trial court judge to state particularized findings on the record and I’m not sure that was done in this case,” Finn wrote. “And the fact that an overflow feed to an ancillary room was available for jury selection but not the trial itself, seems to be a valid concern.”
Beyond courtroom access, Anthony’s lawyers are arguing the prosecution reneged on an informal agreement about the scope of what attorneys could bring up in the trial — a claim Bill Wirskye, the state’s lead prosecutor, said court transcripts clearly contradict. They also say Roach delivered instructions to the jury that indirectly swayed them from considering Anthony’s self-defense claim.
Will Anthony testify at the hearing?
Details of the hearing, including who might be called to testify, have not been publicized.
If Anthony were to take the stand, it would be the first time the public would hear directly from the teen since his arrest shortly after the stabbing, when the teen was seen in body-worn camera footage telling police the stabbing was an act of self-defense. Anthony did not testify in his own defense at trial.
Ordiway said if he were to choose, he’d consider calling Anthony, his trial attorneys, Mike Howard and Toby Shook, and Anthony’s family to take the stand.
“The obvious candidates are Karmelo himself and his trial attorneys, because they’re the only ones who really understand what happened there,” Ordiway said.
How likely is it that Anthony gets a new trial?
Finn wrote that whether Roach is recused from the proceedings, he expects the motion for a new trial will be denied. “They are very rarely granted,” Finn wrote — noting possible exceptions if new evidence, juror misconduct, or serious malpractice comes to light.
Ordiway echoed Finn’s sentiments, saying the odds of Anthony getting a new trial are “very low.”
“Just as the court is going to want to make sure that he got the process due to him, the court also is not going to want to overrule the jury’s verdict in this case unless it has a very, very good reason to do so,” he said.
If the motion is denied, Ordiway said the case will move to the Fifth Court of Appeals in Dallas, where Anthony could rehash many of the same issues brought up during next week’s hearings. His team filed a formal notice of appeal the day after the sentencing, gearing up for a long legal fight.
With even more moving pieces and a much longer runway, Ordiway said the court likely won’t have the required material from both sides until early 2027. “That’ll be a long road ahead there,” he said.
Senior Breaking News Reporter
Jamie Landers is the senior breaking news reporter at The Dallas Morning News, where she covers crime, courts and capital punishment. She is a graduate of The Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication in Phoenix, where she studied journalism and political science. Jamie previously reported for The Arizona Republic and Arizona PBS.
Staff writer
Sally Avila Edwards is an intern for The Dallas Morning News. Avila Edwards covers the latest breaking and trending news about the Dallas-Fort Worth area. She graduated from Harvard with a degree in Government and English Literature. Originally from Central Texas, Avila Edwards previously reported for KXAN Austin and The Harvard Crimson.
This story, originally published in The Dallas Morning News, is reprinted as part of a collaborative partnership between The Dallas Morning News and Texas Metro News. The partnership seeks to boost coverage of Dallas’ communities of color, particularly in southern Dallas.
