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Convicted killer Karmelo Anthony has claimed he's  penniless  and can't afford a lawyer for his appeal - despite his family collecting $625,000 in crowdfunding for his legal defense and  living expenses,  according to a report.

Anthony, 19, made the assertion in a notice of appeal filed after he was found guilty of fatally stabbing 17-year-old Austin Metcalf and sentenced to 35 years behind bars, according to a report by ABC WFAA.

Anthony - who was moved to a Texas state prison Wednesday - is  penniless, destitute, and indigent person, too poor to employ counsel to represent me on the appeal,  reads the appeal form.

4 Karmelo Anthony claimed he is  penniless.  Texas Dept. of Criminal Justice

Anthony's defense attorney, Mike Howard, said the defense has  several important issues for the appellate courts to consider. An appeal is the next part of the legal process and a right afforded every American. 

The GiveSendGo that was set up for Anthony by his mom was closed down Wednesday but a new account could be opened to help fund his new appeal.

It's unclear how a judge would factor in the $625,000 his family collected when determining if he should be considered indigent and eligible for a taxpayer-funded lawyer for his appeal.

4 Supporters of Karmelo Anthony protest before a verdict is announced in Anthony's murder trial outside the Collin County Courthouse in McKinney, Texas, Tuesday, June 9, 2026. The Dallas Morning News via Getty Images

4 Austin Metcalf was murdered on April 2, 2025. Meghan Prall Metcalf/Facebook

The fundraising page said the donations wouldn't only cover legal fees but would help Anthony's family relocate to escape threats they've received and to cover basic needs, counseling and security measures.

Anthony was convicted of killing Metcalf on April 2, 2025, during a high school track and field meet in Frisco, Texas.

4 A courtroom sketch shows Karmelo Anthony (center) at the defense table, the jury on the left and the presiding judge on the right, on Thursday, June 4, 2026. AP

The pair got into a disagreement afte

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