Austin Metcalf died in his twin brother's arms after a knife pierced his heart at a high school track meet.
Now a sitting congresswoman is taking his killer's side.
What Jasmine Crockett said about the family that buried him is where this gets truly ugly.
Crockett Says the Knife That Pierced Austin Metcalf's Heart Was Not a Deadly Weapon
A Collin County jury convicted Karmelo Anthony of first-degree murder on and sentenced him to 35 years in prison – after under three hours to convict.
Representative Jasmine Crockett told TMZ the sentence was excessive for a kid who "had decided to go under a tent that was not his team's tent, as it was raining, and simply didn't want to be put out in the rain by some random kid."
She called the knife "a tool" and "a small object."
Then she argued that Anthony only stabbed Metcalf once – as if stabbing a boy in the heart once is somehow a defense.
"It's my understanding that Karmelo ended up stabbing, puncturing, I don't know what this tool was they talk about, knife or some refer to it as a tool. Um, he ended up hitting Austin one time, and it was about where he hit him. One time. Two inches. This wasn't someone who said, 'Hey, let me stab you five, six, seven times,'" Crockett said.
The jury heard four days of testimony from 21 prosecution witnesses, including Collin County Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Elizabeth Ventura, who confirmed the stab wound pierced Metcalf's heart.
They rejected the self-defense claim and convicted Anthony of first-degree murder.
They also rejected "sudden passion" during sentencing – which would have capped the punishment at 20 years.
Twelve people listened to the evidence for four days and reached a verdict in under three hours.
Crockett Calls Karmelo Anthony Murder Verdict Racist Despite No Black Jurors Argument
Crockett told TMZ she was not present at the trial, yet declared the verdict evidence of racism.
"Oh my God. I know Collin County. So absolutely," she said when asked if race played a role in the outcome.
"I would guarantee you it wouldn't have happened," she added, insisting Anthony would not have been convicted if he were white.
She is a congresswoman whose term ends in January, fresh off losing the Texas Democrat Senate primary to a lesser-known state lawmaker in March 2026.
Fox News documented her pattern: Crockett has accused critics of racism regardless of political affiliation – going after conservative Republicans, liberal podcasters, and ESPN commentators with the same accusation every time.
When two liberal podcast hosts said she couldn't win a Senate race in Texas, she accused them of racism.
When ESPN analyst Stephen A. Smith criticized her stylistic approach, she accused him of attacking black women.
The race card is not a tool she deploys selectively.
It is the only tool she has.
Crockett Tells Austin Metcalf's Family They Have Never Known Real Fear and Agony
The Metcalf family watched their son stabbed to death in front of his brother at a high school track meet.
Austin's father, Jeff Metcalf, told Fox News his son took his last breaths in the arms of his twin brother, Hunter.
Austin Metcalf was the MVP of his football team and carried a 4.0 GPA.
The Metcalf family stood in a Collin County courtroom and delivered victim impact statements directly to Anthony.
Then Jasmine Crockett sat for a TMZ interview and told America the family doesn't understand the "fear and agony" that black women experience.
"Black women, especially black women who have black male children live in fear and agony every single day… fear and agony that I promise you the Metcalfs probably never spent a day living that way," she said.
A sitting member of Congress told a mother who watched her son die that she doesn't know what fear and agony feel like.
Multiple black teen witnesses present at the track meet testified that Anthony was the aggressor.
The system worked. Jasmine Crockett will never forgive it for that.
Sources:
- Leif Le Mahieu, "Jasmine Crockett Explains Why She Thinks Karmelo Anthony Was Justified," The Daily Wire, June 11, 2026.
- Rebeka Zeljko, "'Again, Racism': Jasmine Crockett Minimizes Karmelo Anthony Plunging Knife Into Austin Metcalf's Heart," The Daily Caller, June 10, 2026.
- "Karmelo Anthony sentenced to 35 years after murder conviction in Texas high school stabbing," NBC News, June 10, 2026.
- "Karmelo Anthony found guilty, sentenced to 35 years in prison," Fox 4 Dallas-Fort Worth, June 10, 2026.
- Lindsay Kornick, "Jasmine Crockett's history of playing the race card going after conservative and liberal critics," Fox News, January 26, 2026.
- Peter Pinedo, "'Straight Outta Congress': Top progressive concedes race after viral mockery for 'embarrassing' defeat," Fox News, March 4, 2026.
