BREAKING: Karmelo Anthony found guilty of murder in Austin Metcalf killing

About 100 protesters backing Anthony were outside the courthouse on Tuesday. Anthony did not take the stand in his own defense.

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During the trial, Anthony's defense claimed that their client had acted in self-defense when he plunged a knife into 17-year-old Metcalf's torso, fatally wounding him. In the days following the fatal stabbing, an arrest report revealed that Anthony said "I’m not alleged, I did it," in response to an officer who radioed in, "I have the alleged suspect."

Anthony had been charged with first-degree murder, however, jurors were told ahead of deliberations that they could also consider a lesser charge of manslaughter.

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Jury selection in the case began on June 1, with supporters expressing outrage following the completion of the process after it was revealed that the 12-person, 6-alternate jury had no black members. There were minority members of the jury seated. Family spokesperson Dominique Alexander said that the jury selection indicates that Anthony is "not receiving a fair trial."

Strict rules had been placed on the trial by the judge, with no photography, video recording, or livestreaming being allowed. Protesters gathered outside the court to express support for Anthony, whether he was guilty or not.

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During opening statements, Prosecutor Bill Wirskye revealed to the courtroom the final words from the fatally wounded Metcalf. "I’ve been stabbed," Wirskye quoted Metcalf as saying, revealing that Metcalf had lifted up his shirt and fell down the bleachers where his twin brother, Hunter, came to attempt to aid him. Metcalf died in his brother's arms.

Wirsky told the jury that they were here because "this young man, Karmelo Anthony... decided to take a knife to a high school track meet and provoke and go after another young man he didn't know, and plunged it into his chest, into his heart, causing his death." He called the act "unjustified, provoked murder."

Multiple students who were at the track meet testified over the course of the trial, with one student saying that Anthony had been asked to leave the team tent "about 15 times." Another student said it was "suspicious" that Anthony was near the Memorial track team’s tent, and that he "came out of nowhere." He said that Metcalf had told Anthony to leave, and Anthony "wasn't going to budge."

He testified that Metcalf had pushed Anthony when threatened. Another student claimed he heard Anthony say, "If you want me to move, you're going to have to move me," while yet another student said he heard Anthony say, "touch me and see what happens" with his hand in his backpack.

During closing arguments on Tuesday, defense attorneys said "Austin Metcalf had no legal right to use force to eject Karmelo Anthony from that tent," and that Metcalf "had no legal right to put his hands on Karmelo," with Anthony being "in a public space." He claimed that Metcalf and his brother, Hunter, had used "deadly force to make him leave."

The defense also questioned the bias of the Memorial High School students who testified that Anthony had been the aggressor, saying, "I know it's obvious but let me just say it: every single one was a Memorial kid. We should be on guard for having a bias because, of course they would, Austin was their leader."

The prosecution said that a shove should not be met with a stab, and questioned why Anthony did not just leave the tent. "This is one of those rare cases where every important fact can be boiled down to one sentence: You do not get to meet a shove with a stab, especially if you provoke the shove. Why didn't [Anthony] just not walk away? You see had a choice to walk away and abandon the encounter."

"Self-defense has to be a reasonable belief, a reasonable belief means a belief that would be held by an ordinary and prudent person in the same situation as the defendant. It has to be immediately necessary. Where was the immediate necessity to plunge a knife into an unarmed, young man? It's not self-defense folks, it's murder. Murder, plain and simple."

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