Democratic Representative Jasmine Crockett has voiced her support for Karmelo Anthony’s decision to defend himself with a knife in the fatal encounter with Austin Metcalf. This comes after Anthony, who is now 19, was sentenced to 35 years in prison for the killing of 17-year-old Metcalf in April 2025.
Crockett, a Texas lawmaker aged 45 and a former public defender, made her comments during a livestream of her online show, “Clock It with Crockett,” shortly after Anthony’s sentencing on Tuesday. She argued that Anthony’s actions were justified, given the circumstances surrounding the altercation.
The defense team for Anthony contended that he acted in self-defense. They highlighted the significant size difference between the two young men, noting that Metcalf was 80 pounds heavier and taller than Anthony, who hails from Frisco, Texas.
Reflecting on these physical disparities, Crockett stated, “If a 300-pound man is beating me, I’m not going to limit myself to using just my fists. I’m telling you right now, if you’re twice my weight, I don’t believe I am going to survive.”
Crockett further illustrated her point by referencing the tragic case of George Floyd, saying, “If you look at George Floyd, he died, and they never took out a weapon. So this idea that you can’t die is wild.” Her comments suggest a broader conversation about self-defense and the measures one might be justified in taking when faced with a perceived threat to their life.
‘If you look at George Floyd, George Floyd died and they never took out a weapon. So this idea that you can’t die is wild.’
She went on to add that she would argue that the hands of a football player, which Metcalf was, could be considered lethal weapons.
Crockett also spoke about the pocket knife used by Anthony to kill the teenager which was shown to the jury but images of it have not yet been shared with the media.
Despite having never seen it, she said: ‘I would have argued by the size of it alone that it wasn’t a deadly weapon, if it was one of the little ones. But I don’t know.’
Crockett livestreamed an episode of her online show ‘Clock It with Crockett’ in the hours after Anthony, now 19, was sentenced
Metcalf, pictured here, was stabbed once in the chest. The knife pierced through his bone in the center of his chest and punctured the right side of his heart
Towards the end of the near two hour long show, she appeared to play down the pain of the Metcalf family for the loss of their son.
She said: ‘Black women especially black women who have black male children live in fear and agony every single day.
Anthony is seen here in a mugshot released after his sentencing on Tuesdsay
‘A fear and agony that I promise you the Metcalfs probably never spend a day living that way.’
Anthony sobbed in court on Tuesday and his family burst into tears as the judge handed down the verdict, his mother begged the jury to show him mercy.
There was an audible gasp in Texas courtroom when his 35-year sentence was handed down shortly after.
Following Anthony’s sentencing, victim impact statements were read aloud by members of Metcalf’s devastated family including his mother and father.
Metcalf’s mom, Meghan Metcalf said: ‘Seeing my loving son, his identical twin, lose the most important person in his life, it crushes you as a mother.
‘Austin was a hugger, and a good one at that. Austin always had a way of bringing people together. He was the peacemaker, the protector,’ she recalled.
Anthony’s defense team argued that he was acting in self defense when he stabbed the teenager
The tent where the stabbing occurred is seen here inside Kukendall Stadium in Frisco in April of last year
‘There is a part of him you can never take away from me or anyone who loves Austin. What it meant to be loved by him. It’s the love that I can continue to have in my heart.
‘He was taken from us just as he was starting to really live,’ the slain teen’s mom said as she addressed Anthony directly.
‘You may have just been given a sentence of 35 years behind bars but you can consider yourself lucky because I’ve been sentenced to a lifetime without my son,’ she added.
Metcalf’s father, Jeff, also delivered an impact statement on Tuesday evening.
He told the court how his family was ‘robbed’ of seeing Austin grow up, and expressed his grief that he couldn’t defend his son.
He went on to express the ‘unfiltered rage’ he has experienced since his son was murdered, saying Austin’s death ‘didn’t just break my heart’ but also destroyed his ‘sense of safety’ and ‘faith in people.’
The murder case shocked America, and the discussion surrounding the killing of a white teenager by a black peer quickly became racially fraught.
Metcalf was stabbed once in the chest. The knife pierced through his bone in the center of his chest and punctured the right side of his heart, a medical examiner testified.
