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The jury has been seated. The question of who's on it is already raising eyebrows.
A jury of 12 and six alternates was finalized on Wednesday (June 3) in the murder trial of Karmelo Anthony, the 19-year-old Black teen charged with fatally stabbing 17-year-old Austin Metcalf during a Frisco, Texas, track meet in April 2025, according to CBS News.
Opening statements began Thursday morning (June 4) at the Collin County Courthouse in McKinney.
No Black jurors were seated. Defense attorneys objected to the prosecution's removal of two Black prospective jurors from the pool, but the judge allowed it, noting they were dismissed for race-neutral reasons tied to their occupations as educators.
The prosecution had argued throughout jury selection that the circumstances of the case were "race-neutral" and did not require a diverse panel. Judge John Roach overruled that objection.
The path to a jury was not smooth. Jury selection began June 1 with a pool of nearly 600 prospective jurors — a number that was whittled down over several days of intensive questioning by both sides.
Media coverage of the case emerged as a central concern, with multiple prospective jurors admitting it had shaped their views. "I don't know if it's going to affect me, but I can't tell you those thoughts are not inside my head," one prospective juror said, per CBS News.
Another, identified as an educator in the Frisco Independent School District — where both Anthony and Metcalf attended separate high schools — said, "This is close enough to home that I'm not confident that I could be completely fair."
One prospective juror identified as Black told the court he would "have a hard time putting a brother in jail." He was not seated.
Defense attorney Mike Howard also drew sharp pushback from prospective jurors when he asked how they felt about the country's immigration policies — a question many refused to answer, calling it irrelevant to the case.
Anthony has pleaded not guilty. His defense is expected to center on a self-defense claim — arguing Anthony stabbed Metcalf, who was unarmed, after feeling threatened during the altercation. Anthony told officers at the scene, "I was protecting myself."
If convicted of first-degree murder, he faces five to 99 years or life in prison.
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