A 75-page court filing packed with allegations against convicted Frisco track meet killer Karmelo Anthony has drawn wide attention since it surfaced, but a Texas defense attorney says the document doesn’t mean what many people assume it does.
The filing, obtained by Fox News Digital, was submitted by prosecutors before Anthony’s murder trial under Texas Rule of Evidence 404(b). It lists dozens of alleged prior acts, including claims that Anthony stalked his girlfriend hours before fatally stabbing 17-year-old Austin Metcalf at a Frisco high school track meet on April 2, 2025. It also cites text messages in which Anthony allegedly said he was “on the verge,” photos of him posing with firearms, and messages discussing robberies, narcotics, extended magazines and threats against multiple people, including his then-girlfriend, over several years.
The document also reaches back to Anthony’s school years in Louisiana, alleging repeated fights, suspensions, threats and assaults, and cites messages in which he allegedly wrote, “When I get mad i see red,” “When I get mad i blackout” and “When I get mad i cant control myself.”
Notice, Not Proof
Tiffany Burks, a partner at Texas law firm Varghese Summersett and a former prosecutor, said the filing has been widely misread. Filing a Rule 404(b) notice does not mean any of that evidence was guaranteed to reach the jury. Instead, it simply put Anthony’s defense on notice of material prosecutors might ask to introduce, giving them time to investigate the allegations and prepare a response before trial.
“The law requires that you file a 404(b) notice so that you can give the other side notice of what it is you may want to put in trial because the parties have to be prepared,” Burks said. “Specifically, the defense has to be prepared to respond or rebut that information.”
That requirement, Burks said, is also why the filing grew so long. Prosecutors tend to list everything they might conceivably want to use, since failing to disclose an item means they can’t raise it later.
“When I was a prosecutor, I would put everything but the kitchen sink in the notice,” Burks said. “If you don’t give the other side notice of it, then you’re not going to be able to utilize it later.”
Rule 404(b) generally bars prosecutors from introducing a defendant’s prior acts merely to suggest bad character. Judges can allow such evidence for other purposes, however, and Burks said that becomes especially relevant when a defendant claims self-defense, since prosecutors often use prior-conduct evidence to argue the defendant, not the alleged victim, was the first aggressor.
“The prosecution can file a 404(b) notice to provide some information that can show that the defendant was, in fact, the first aggressor in the situation by showing information of previous aggressive acts,” Burks said. “They can also use it to rebut a defensive theory.”
Anthony argued he acted in self-defense during the confrontation with Metcalf. Prosecutors filed the 404(b) notice roughly a month before trial, preserving the option to ask the judge to admit any of the listed prior acts if they became relevant.
What the Jury Actually Heard
A Collin County jury rejected Anthony’s self-defense claim after hearing testimony from more than 20 witnesses and reviewing surveillance video from the track meet. Anthony was convicted of murder and sentenced to 35 years in prison.
Whether jurors ever saw the specific allegations catalogued in the 75-page filing is a separate matter from whether the filing existed, Burks said. A judge still has to rule on the admissibility of each item before it can be shown in court, and prosecutors don’t necessarily seek to introduce everything they’ve disclosed.
“I think probably the biggest misconception people have about 404(b) is they think that because you’ve given the other side notice of it, that it’s automatically going to come in,” Burks said. “That is not what it means.”
The filing has taken on renewed significance because Anthony is now seeking a new trial, arguing that confusion over a pretrial agreement covering character evidence affected his decision not to testify. Prosecutors dispute that account.
Metcalf’s father, Jeff Metcalf, has said he had “no idea” about many of the allegations in the filing until reviewing it after the trial, telling Fox News contributor Donna Rotunno he was surprised by its scope.
Fox News Digital said it reached out to Anthony’s attorney and the prosecutors’ office for comment.
