Austin Metcalf’s grieving father expressed an unexpected sense of empathy for Karmelo Anthony, the teenager sentenced to a lengthy prison term for the fatal stabbing of his son.
In a courtroom in McKinney, Texas, Jeff Metcalf confessed to feeling some sympathy for the 19-year-old who killed his son. He revealed that he sought to forgive the young man who took the life of his football-star son to find peace for his own mental well-being.
“I’ll even say this: I had a little bit of sorrow because I’m human,” the grief-stricken dad told CBS News Wednesday.
“And that poor boy is fixing to experience a life that I would not wish upon anyone,” he continued.
“Forgiveness was not for him. Forgiveness was for me. So I don’t carry the rage, the hate, and that around; it will eat me up like cancer.”
Anthony was found guilty of first-degree murder for the death of Austin Metcalf, a 17-year-old high school athlete he knifed during a dispute at a track and field meet in Frisco on April 2, 2025.
The baby-faced teen was sentenced to 35 years in prison and faces a parole review in 17 years — but Jeff believes the penalty should’ve been life imprisonment.
He vowed he would be in court advocating against parole if he is still alive.
“If I’m still alive, yes, I will be there in person,” he said. “If not, I am going to make a video. If I’m passed on, that can be played.”
The devastated dad also swatted down claims that his son was killed over race.
Anthony’s family and his supporters have repeatedly claimed he was the victim of racism in the prosecution, which legal experts predicted would most likely take center stage in his appeal.
“This case was never about race,” he told the outlet.
“There’s going to be those people now, just, you know, trying to throw shade on the whole trial with the jury makeup and the speed of it and that sort of thing. I mean, those are the same people that said he was jumped by four people. You’re going to spin whatever story to try to keep yourself afloat.”
