New judge to consider retrial for Karmelo Anthony in murder of Austin Metcalf

 A judge on Thursday will consider whether to grant Karmelo Anthony a new trial following his murder conviction earlier this summer in the stabbing death of a 17-year-old Austin Metcalf at a Frisco track meet.

In a legal victory for Anthony, the judge who presided over his trial was removed from the case on Wednesday. Judge Michael Chitty was then assigned to consider the motion from Anthony's attorneys asking for a retrial in the killing of Metcalf.

Anthony, now 19, was sentenced to 35 years in prison in the case. He attended Wednesday's hearing wearing a green prison jumpsuit. His parents and Metcalf's also attended the hearing.

Anthony's attorneys had asked that state District Judge John Roach Jr. be removed, in part, because of a TV interview in which Roach said jurors "got it right" when they delivered a guilty verdict. 

In seeking a new trial, Anthony's attorneys have argued that the June proceedings were marred by strict courtroom rules and improper jury instructions. They have also said Anthony's decision not to testify came after a dispute with prosecutors over an agreement to focus the trial on the events leading up to the stabbing.

Jurors in the trial had rejected Anthony's claims that he acted in self-defense during a confrontation with Metcalf in the stadium bleachers last year. Students who took the stand described a heated exchange over Anthony's refusal on a rainy spring day to leave a tent that belonged to Metcalf's team.

The case attracted national attention in part because of a flood of social media posts that amplified the killing in racial terms. Anthony is Black; Metcalf was white. Lawyers on both sides, however, told jurors the tragedy had nothing to do with race.

The retrial hearing is scheduled to begin at 9 a.m. 

What happened during the recusal hearing?

During the recusal hearing on Wednesday, Anthony's legal team focused on comments Roach made to a Dallas TV station after the trial had ended. In the interview, which was played after the hearing began, Roach was asked if the jury got "it right."

"Yeah, they did," Roach said, adding: "Whatever they say, they got it right."

During the interview, Roach also defended his courtroom rules and spoke about the onslaught of online postings about the case.

What prosecutors say happened in Metcalf's killing

As national attention on the killing intensified last year, the families of both Metcalf and Anthony said they had been targets of harassment.

Several schools were competing at the track event when Anthony sat under the Memorial High School tent that was perched in the bleachers. Metcalf and others had repeatedly told Anthony to leave, witnesses testified, leading to an escalating confrontation.

Prosecutors said Anthony provoked Metcalf, and witnesses testified that Anthony was the aggressor.

At one point, Anthony reached into a bag and replied, "Touch me and see what happens," according to a police report.

Metcalf pushed Anthony, according to witnesses, who said Anthony then pulled out a knife and stabbed him in the chest.