Sentencing phase begins after Karmelo Anthony guilty of murder

[00:00:00] Speaker 1: And Karen, that was one of the most memorable moments I've ever had inside a courtroom. The tension, the emotion, it was very overwhelming at times for a lot of those people in there. Let me start off by talking about where we are right now, and then we'll go back to where we started this day, which is, I don't think anybody imagined this morning we would be at this point in the trial right now. It's moved at just lightning pace. The judge at this moment is working on a charge to the jury, otherwise known as the jury instructions, which will be read to the jury to determine sentencing. Now that he's already been found guilty, there's another trial right afterward called the sentencing trial or punishment phase, and that involves opening statements, witnesses, closing arguments. A lot of that's been taken off the table by both sides, prosecution and defense. So the judge is going to read the instructions. We still expect to hear closing arguments from the prosecution and the defense who are hopefully trying to, you know, argue for a We don't know. We don't know if we're at that point. We don't know what prosecutors are going to ask for at this point, but once that happens, the jury will go right back into their room and they will start deliberating a sentence, which means we could have his guilt or innocence verdict today and his sentencing today. If they don't reach a decision tonight, they will be sequestered and they'll start up again tomorrow. Now, earlier today, I think we have some courtroom sketches to show you what actually transpired, but we had closing arguments in this case and both sides gave the jury their best argument for why they should either convict or acquit Carmelo Anthony. The prosecution, of course, argued that Carmelo Anthony had no right to be at that tent underneath the bleachers or in the bleachers at Kirkendall Stadium in Frisco. They said that Carmelo provoked the attack and that witnesses backed up the story. Defense attorneys on their side said that Austin was the aggressor. Carmelo had a legal right to the knife and that he They acted in self defense. Now the jury went back to deliberate at around 11 a.m. This morning. We didn't know how long they take. We certainly were surprised. We got a text message at 1 45 saying they've got a verdict and to be in the courtroom at 205. We go into the courtroom and at that point you could feel the tension in there. Everybody was in there. Not only Carmelo Anthony's family, Austin Metcalfe's family, but Hunter Metcalfe, Austin's twin brother, who's been on the witness list. Not allowed in the courtroom at all, not allowed in the courtroom at all, was inside the courtroom. Carmelo's attorney had his head on his client's forehead. They were in deep discussion quietly. He had his hand on his shoulder. Clearly Carmelo was not in a, he was in an agitated or anguished mind state at this point. The judge read the verdict of guilty after two and a half hours. We heard Carmelo break down and sobs. His mother also broke down. The judge then said that, you know, because he's now guilty of murder. He's a convicted murderer. The judge remanded him to the custody of the Collin County Sheriff's office. They took him back, even though his attorney asked for some time to collect himself. The judge said, no, he's no longer a free man. And they brought him back in after about five or 10 minutes, started the sentencing phase and both sides moved at lightning pace. We expected to hear possibly some character witnesses or talk about the background. Anything that would. Hopefully for the defense side of it, give Carmelo Anthony something for the jury to think about other than his murder conviction. We did not hear that at this point. We heard his mother testify. She was the only defense witness during the sentencing. She was asked if she, you know, loved her son. She said, quote, he'll always be my baby. I love him so very much. And she was asked if she, if Carmelo regrets what he did. She replied, quote, yes, I know my son. And he's very sorry for what he did. And that is there anything you want to tell the jury? Please have mercy on my son. So that's all the jury will have in terms of evidence or testimony for the sentencing phase of this trial. We're still waiting to hear if the judges come back yet and if there will be closing arguments and sentencing. But that's pretty much the story here. Other than this massive crowd that's building around us of both Carmelo Anthony supporters and people who are here remembering Austin Metcalfe. [00:04:23] Speaker 2: J.D., got a question for you before we let you go here, because you've been covering this from the very beginning. You've covered Collin County and the courts and the entire judicial system there for many, many years. What do you make of the lightning speed at which everything moved? I mean, from beginning to end to the moment that we got to this point. I mean, it just seems like everything is changing by the minute. It's been happening so fast. [00:04:43] Speaker 1: Yes, and that's been pretty much the M.O. of this judge, John Roach. He's the longest serving judge currently here in Collin County. He definitely does not cater to either side. He's very... I don't know what the word for it is, but he just really puts pressure on both the defense and prosecution to move through their case and their witnesses as quickly as possible. He had already planned on this case wrapping up by this Friday. That's why we had the Saturday session last week. But, you know, you talk about that. You talk about how this court works so fast and in their eyes efficiently. But for these people out here and also the people out there watching this from afar, it does raise some questions in their mind about, you know, the credibility of the justice system and the, you know, the quality of this case and the trial and whether or not justice was served. That's certainly going to be something that resonates long after we leave here today or tomorrow.