The Texas teenager accused of fatally stabbing a fellow 17-year-old student athlete, Karmelo Anthony, will be allowed to graduate from high school despite his first-degree murder charge.

The news was confirmed by a spokesman for the Anthony family, Dominique Alexander, who told the Daily Mail: “We are in arrangements of doing an early graduation. They have agreed to allow him to graduate.” 

Mr. Alexander stated that his client’s 3.7 GPA — which he had at the time of the stabbing — was high enough to allow him to graduate from Centennial High School without completing any more school work. Mr. Alexander insisted that Mr. Anthony is not “asking for accommodations” or “for him to be part of any activities or anything,” and he will not walk in the graduation ceremony with his fellow classmates. Under the terms of his bail, Mr. Anthony is under house arrest at an undisclosed location and is wearing an electronic monitoring device.

The graduation development marks a significant about-face by the Frisco Independent School District, which, according to Mr. Alexander, had previously sought to expel the 17-year-old suspect. An expulsion would have automatically prevented him from graduating. 

The school district’s decision is already drumming up controversy among political commentators who argue that the kindness allotted to Mr. Anthony — who is Black — is racially biased. Mr. Anthony was arrested on April 2 for fatally stabbing Austin Metcalf — who was white — following an altercation at a track meet in Frisco. The accused killer claims that he acted in self-defense and has pleaded not guilty.

A conservative commentator, Megyn Kelly, responded to the news of Mr. Anthony’s impending graduation by saying, “Sure this would totally happen if the races were reversed.” A conservative pundit, Mike Engleman, wrote on X: “Can you believe Karmelo Anthony will be allowed to graduate high school like nothing happened?? Who agrees this is outrageous and ridiculous???” 

On the other hand, a Black interest group, the American Freedmen Legal Fund, praised the decision as “a win for fairness, due process, and the belief that every student deserves the right to education until proven guilty in a court of law—not judged by public opinion.” It had issued a formal objection to the school board over the attempts to expel Mr. Anthony “before any conviction.” 

This is hardly the first time that outrage has erupted over displays of support for Mr. Anthony and his family. Mr. Anthony’s release on bail — which was lowered to $250,000 from $1 million — was met with criticism by victims’ rights advocates, as well as by some conservative commentators who claim the case would be handled very differently by law enforcement and the media if the races of the two teens were reversed. 

Further debate has centered around a GiveSendGo fundraiser that has raised more than $528,000 for Mr. Anthony and his family. The money, according to the family, will not only be used for their son’s legal expenses, but also to finance the family’s “safe relocation” amid “escalating threats to their safety and well-being” as well as to cover their “basic living costs, transportation, counseling, and other security measures.” 

The Anthony family has been vocal about the racially charged threats and harassment that they have received in the wake of their son’s arrest. Next Generation Action Network, which is assisting the Anthony family, said the family has been targeted by false food deliveries, intimidation, and disturbing mailings, including Metcalf’s obituary.

While critics have called on GiveSendGo — the only platform currently offering a fundraiser for the family — to drop the campaign, the company’s co-founder, Jacob Wells, shot them down, citing his commitment to “presumption of innocence.” Mr Wells conceded, however, that “the facts don’t look good for Karmelo Anthony, according to what we’ve seen so far.” 

The deadly incident occurred when Metcalf, a student at Frisco Memorial High School, asked Mr. Anthony, a student of Centennial High School, to move from his seat under the Memorial High School tent during a track meet. 

According to an arrest warrant affidavit, witnesses testified that Mr. Anthony then reached into his backpack and warned, “Touch me and see what happens.” As Metcalf went to grab Mr. Anthony to move him, Mr. Anthony allegedly pulled out a knife and stabbed Metcalf in the chest. Metcalf’s twin, Hunter, said he tried to save his bleeding brother before he succumbed to his injuries in his arms.

Legal experts are dubious that Mr. Anthony’s self-defense claim will hold up in court. “If the evidence is what it is right now, I think he’s going to have an uphill battle claiming self-defense,” a New York attorney, Julie Rendelman, who is not involved in the case, told Fox News. “But we may learn much, much more that changes that perspective. And that could be for a jury or a grand jury to decide.”