The father of a 17-year-old student who was fatally stabbed at a Texas track meet is speaking out after learning that the teen accused of the murder will still be awarded his high school diploma.
Austin Metcalf, 17, was stabbed in the heart on April 2 during a track and field event at Kuykendall Stadium in Frisco, Texas. He died in the arms of his younger brother, Hunter, at the scene.
Karmelo Anthony, 18, has been charged with murder. Police say the incident began as a fight in the stands and escalated when Anthony allegedly pulled a knife. Officers arrived around 10 a.m., and despite CPR and emergency care, Austin could not be saved.
Anthony was arrested and later released to house arrest. He remains charged with murder but is not currently in jail.
Now, Austin’s father, Jeffrey Metcalf, has filed a formal complaint with the Texas Education Agency (TEA), protesting Centennial High School’s decision to allow Anthony to graduate and receive his diploma, despite the pending murder charge.
“They were literally trying to expel him—period,” said Anthony’s spokesman Dominique Alexander. “Now you have a father filing a complaint to the TEA.”
According to reports, Anthony will not walk the stage at the Frisco Independent School District graduation ceremony but will be allowed to receive his diploma in a private early graduation.
Last month, Jeffrey Metcalf attended a press conference held by the Anthony family, where they announced plans to fight the murder charge. Anthony’s parents claim he acted in self-defense, alleging that Austin was the aggressor in the incident.
Anthony’s mother, Kala Hayes, said the media attention and accusations have put her family in danger.
Metcalf said he felt disrespected at the press conference and was escorted out by police.
“They should have pulled me up and said, ‘We are so sorry. Our condolences.’ The only thing I would have said was, ‘Okay, can we pray together and show the world we’re united,’” he told the New York Post.
The case remains under investigation.