I’ve avoided writing about the Karmelo Anthony matter because it was very much an open-and-shut case of unprovoked murder. The empaneled jury had no black members, but six minorities, because prospective black jurors said they wouldn’t feel comfortable putting “a brother” in prison.
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The trial went very badly for Anthony. Even his black teammates testified that Anthony provoked the confrontation that ended with Anthony stabbing Austin Metcalf in the heart with a knife he brought to the no-weapon track meet. Anthony’s lawyers argued self-defense, but unrebutted testimony made clear he was never in danger justifying deadly, or indeed any force. He was in a tent he was not allowed to be in, and despite multiple requests that he leave, refused. When Metcalf finally pushed him to get him to leave, Anthony, whose hand was hidden in a backpack, drew the knife and stabbed Metcalf once in the chest, killing him.
There are no circumstances where a non-damaging touch can justify deadly force. Metcalf bled out internally and died within minutes. Anthony did not testify in his defense, and the defense rested.
The jury deliberated three hours before returning a guilty verdict. They later sentenced him to 35 years in prison.
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I write now because Democrats are charging that Republicans are investigating vote fraud as a means of distracting voters from the Iran war, various Trump policies, the weather, Epstein, you name it. Even if Democrats are hoping to use the Anthony verdict to distract from their bizarre candidates Graham Platner and James Talarico, a far bigger problem is they may be trying to use unjustified charges of racism to provoke a second, mostly peaceful but fiery, “Summer of Love:”
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Anti-white rage, outside the courtroom before and after the verdict, and from black politicians and “activists,” has been widespread, aggressive, and ungrounded in fact:
Rep. Jasmine Crockett, a rare radical Democrat elected in deep red Texas, took to her podcast after Tuesday’s verdict to make false claims about the trial and its jury as she continues to stir up racial hatred.
“I’m not necessarily convinced — not that I could tell you the name of one person on this jury — that we had 12 impartial White folk out of Collin County sitting on a jury for this young black man,” she said, exhibiting her empathy for the convicted murderer.
Her claim about the jury is patently false.
Crockett was also seen on a podcast portraying the knife as nothing more than a harmless toy, despite having no idea about it or the trial testimony.
Dominique Alexander, a local Black Lives Matter activist who has been involved with the Anthony family since Karmelo’s arrest, slammed injected racial rhetoric into the conversation.
“What this process did is show that black lives do not matter in Collin County,” he said. “This trial showed that it put emotions over the law. After Trayvon Martin and so many countless names, it has shown us that Black life is not safe in Collin County.”
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Martin ambushed and was in the process of beating George Zimmerman to death when Zimmerman, acting in lawful self-defense, shot him once, killing him. Zimmerman, a media-branded “white Hispanic,” was acquitted.
Alexander also claimed without evidence that the judge in the case “interfered in this process,” and repeated the false claim that the jury was “all white.”
Among the jury were Indians—the subcontinent—and Asians.
Bree Newsome, an online far-leftist, insisted that race was a factor in the case.
“Karmelo Anthony would be treated totally different by the legal system were he a white boy killing a black boy,” she said. “That’s the whole point. That’s what matters. Stop pretending there’s anything Black people can do in our behavior to prevent racism. Racism defines the entire system.”
A real danger is when black people, or those of any race, scream prejudice regardless of the facts of a case, particularly one as clear-cut as this one. After a career in police work in several states, I have no doubt that in a case with these facts, the races of the accused and the victim would not have mattered, as they should not. The unprovoked, deadly stabbing of anyone is murder; race is irrelevant.
The fact is the goals of the Civil Rights movement have been realized, and Americans are glad for it, but since Barack Obama, black Americans have been encouraged and rewarded for keeping the racial pot stirred. There’s no money or political advantage in racial harmony.
Will there be a second “Summer of Love” inspired and funded by Democrats? It’s possible but unlikely. The police weren’t involved in the Anthony murder, and he’s a poor candidate for sainthood or martyrdom. So was George Floyd, the addicted violent felon no sane parent should want their son to emulate, but no one ever said Democrats must be consistent, honest–or sane.
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Mike McDaniel is a USAF veteran, classically trained musician, Japanese and European fencer, lifelong athlete, firearm instructor, retired police officer, and high school and college English teacher. He is a published author and blogger. His home blog is Stately McDaniel Manor.