The defense was stunned this week when jury selection wrapped up in the murder trial of a white football star and ended without a single black juror being selected to hear the case against Texas high school student Karmelo Anthony.
The trial to determine if the black Texas teen is guilty of cold-blooded murder will begin on Thursday, now that the jury is chosen. But Anthony’s attorney, Mike Howard, objected to the all-white jury and says the prosecution was guided by racism to strike his last three juror picks, the New York Post reported.
“Those three were 100% of the available African American jurors in the strike zone,” the attorney said.
The prosecution, though, said they did not use their strikes against the three black jury pool members because of their race, but because they were all schoolteachers and would be hearing a case involving schools and school policy.
Karmelo Anthony, 19, faces charges of murder for the April 2, 2025, killing of white high school football player Austin Metcalf at the high school in Frisco, Texas.
Anthony allegedly became angry over the seating arrangement at a track meet, pulled a large knife out of his gym bag, and stabbed Metcalf in the chest.
After he was charged with the stabbing, racially motivated donors raised $600,000 for Anthony. In a statement at the time, a family spokesman said the donations would allow donors to “stand with us in the fight against white supremacy.”
Anthony was also a football player for the same high school as the victim, and his legal team is claiming self-defense and saying that the teen suspect was protecting himself against the unarmed, white football player.
The teen is facing first-degree murder charges, but because he was 18 at the time of the stabbing, he will not face the death penalty. However, he could still face 99 years to life in prison.
The threat of a long prison sentence also led to the dismissal of some of the potential jurors. Several jurors said they would have a hard time convicting Anthony because they disliked the idea of condemning such a young person to a lifetime in jail.
Social justice activist groups are weighing in on the all-white jury, and one in particular proclaimed it unfair. An organization called Next Generation Action Network (NGAN) has put out a statement saying that the jury selection “raises serious concerns about fairness and equal justice.”
“We respect the court, but we will not remain silent. NGAN will continue monitoring this case and informing the public every step of the way. Every person deserves a fair trial and confidence that justice is being administered without bias,” the Dallas-based group said in an X post on Wednesday.
“We are calling on the court to ensure Mr. Anthony’s constitutional rights are fully protected.”
NGAN is fronted by Black Lives Matter activist Dominique Alexander, who started the group in 2014. According to Influence Watch, Alexander has a criminal record of his own, having been arrested for domestic abuse in 2025, 2019, and 2011. He was also convicted in 2011 of a felony for causing injury to a child by shaking. And he was later convicted of a probation violation in 2016.
Follow Warner Todd Huston on Facebook at: Facebook.com/Warner.Todd.Huston, Truth Social @WarnerToddHuston, or at X/Twitter @WTHuston
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