The April 2025 stabbing death of a 17-year-old student athlete at the hands of another 17-year-old during a track meet in Frisco. It is a case that shook the consciousness of Collin County. This week, a Collin County jury found Karmelo Anthony, now 19, guilty of murder. Anthony claimed self-de fense in the incident. Jurors went on to sentence Anthony to 35 years in prison, with the possibility of parole in approximately 17 years. Anthony’s legal team has already filed a notice of appeal. Frisco Jun 10 Karmelo Anthony to appeal murder conviction in Frisco stabbing case Frisco Jun 8 Karmelo Anthony sentenced to 35 years for the murder of Austin Metcalf Frisco Jun 8 Defense rests in Karmelo Anthony murder trial; closing arguments begin Tuesday morning Frisco Jun 5 State rests in Karmelo Anthony murder trial, defense begins calling witnesses Frisco Jun 3 Witnesses share heartbreaking efforts to save victim's life on Day 1 of Karmelo Anthony murder trial Frisco May 27 Karmelo Anthony murder trial underway over a year after fatal stabbing at Frisco track meet Collin County Assistant District Attorney and former Dallas County prosecutor, Dewey Mitchell, joined veteran prosecutor Bill Wirskye in the high-profile trial. Before joining the Collin County District Attorney’s Office, Mitchell was a prosecutor in Dallas County for 15.5 years. Mitchell agreed to share some reflections days after securing the conviction, acknowledging the tragedy of it all. “Decisions have long-term consequences,” Mitchell said. “You can’t discuss this case without the recognition of the loss of life for two young men, no matter how you look at it.” While Mitchell agreed to sit down with NBC 5 for an interview, he remained measured in his responses; unable to discuss specific issues surrounding the case and trial, including questions about those who testified and those who weren’t called or opted not to take the stand, most notably Anthony [as is his Constitutional right] and the victim’s twin brother who was present during the altercation. Mitchell is unable to address lingering questions over whether jurors walked away with a clear understanding of why the teen defendant was carrying a folding knife with a 3.5-inch blade in his bag and why Anthony did not simply leave despite Memorial High School students repeatedly asking him to. However, there is something he wants to set straight. The defendant did not have an “all-white jury” as some continue to assert online. NBC 5 reporters observed Asian women, a Muslim woman wearing a Hijab, and a man who appears to be Afro-Latino or of Persian/Middle Eastern descent. Mitchell also emphasizes that both the state and defense called students who attended neither Memorial nor Centennial High Schools. “We talked about the jury being a cross-section of our community and I think one of the powerful things in the trial was witnesses also represented a cross-section of our community from different backgrounds, different schools,” he said. In their final statements to jurors during the sentencing phase, neither Mitchell nor Wirskye asked for a specific prison sentence [jurors had to decide between 5 to 99 years or life in prison]. Wirskye only asking jurors for a ‘lengthy, lengthy prison sentence.’ “I think we felt it wasn’t our place in this case,” said Mitchell. “Our place was to say: Think about these aspects of your job. You’re representatives of your community. This, and like one of the things I told them was: This isn’t about vengeance and it’s not about leniency.” It took jurors just under three hours to come to a unanimous decision sentencing Anthony to 35 years in prison. Mitchell has received criticism from both sides over the sentence: some saying it’s too long, others saying it’s not long enough. To him, that signals the jurors came to a ‘measured’ sentence. When asked what would stay with him about the trial, “The fact that a family sent their kid to a track meet and then that child did not come home. I think that touched our community,” he responded. “And I think that’s also why I hope that now that this is over the community can try to heal.” ...read more read less