A father is urgently seeking to prevent a school from issuing a diploma to an alleged murderer, following the tragic stabbing of his 17-year-old son during a track meet.
Austin Metcalf was tragically killed by a stab wound to the heart while attending a track and field championship with his younger brother, Hunter, at Kuykendall Stadium in Frisco on April 2.
The accused, 18-year-old Karmelo Anthony, reportedly brandished a knife during an altercation over seating arrangements in the stands. Austin Metcalf allegedly passed away in his brother’s arms.
According to NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth, police responded to the incident at around 10am, stating: “Despite lifesaving measures by police and fire personnel, including CPR and the administration of blood, the (17)-year-old victim died.”
Frisco police apprehended Anthony and charged him, subsequently releasing him on house arrest, as reported by NBC News.
In light of these events, Austin’s father, Jeffrey Metcalf, has lodged a formal complaint against Centennial High School for planning to award Anthony his diploma amidst the serious allegations.
Dominque Alexander, a representative for Anthony, confirmed the filing of the complaint to the Daily Mail.
“Now you have a father filing a complaint to the TEA [Texas Education Agency],” Alexander stated.
Although Anthony is on track to receive his diploma, the Daily Mail notes that he is unlikely to participate in the graduation ceremony or collect his diploma in person at Frisco Independent School District due to his house arrest status.
UNILAD has sought commentary from Frisco ISD regarding the situation.
“We are in arrangements of doing an early gradation. They have agreed to allow him to graduate. They were literally trying to expel him – period,” Alexander remarked last week.
Last month, Metcalf attended a press conference organized by Anthony’s family, who are intending to contest their son’s first-degree murder charge.
Anthony’s mother, Kala Hayes, discussed the “lies and false accusations that have been said about us, especially over the past week,” asserting that these claims “put my family in danger.”
The accused’s parents have argued that Anthony acted in self-defense, claiming Austin initiated the attack.
At the press conference, Metcalf expressed feeling “disrespected” after being escorted out by police.
“They should have pulled me up [to the front] 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 conveyed to the New York Post.