Karmelo Anthony, Family Move After Repeated Harassment At Their Home

Karmelo Anthony has been evacuated from his home and moved to an undisclosed location for his protection due to repeated and escalating threats, harassment, and intimidation tactics his family faces at their residence. 

In a press release sent to NewsOne on Monday, the Next Generation Action Network (NGAN) said it was “gravely concerned” because over the last few days, the family has received an increased number of “death threats, continued harassment, and physical intimidation targeted at the family’s home.”

These actions have included: 

● Individuals are physically visiting the Anthony family home, loitering, and taking photos of the property. 

● False food deliveries, including pizzas and other orders made to disturb and harass the family. 

● Disturbing mailings were received through the U.S. Postal Service, including an obituary of Austin Metcalf sent directly to their address. 

● Unidentified individuals repeatedly circling the family home, capturing images, and attempting to provoke fear and intimidation.

NGAN says that because of these credible threats, along with the environment created by the “Protect White Americans” rally that took place in Frisco, Texas, on Saturday, Karmelo Anthony’s family moved him from their home to an undisclosed location, with court approval, to protect his safety.  

Anthony, 17, was arrested April 2 and charged with first-degree murder in the death of 17-year-old Austin Metcalf. Karmelo Anthony, who is Black, is being prosecuted under Texas’ “concurrent jurisdiction” laws that allow prosecutors to charge minors as adults without judicial oversight, and as Capital B notes, these laws disproportionately affect Black and brown youth. 

Austin Metcalf was white, and that alone has been enough to make this case and the media coverage around it a racist powder keg just waiting to be ignited. 

Judge Angela Tucker, who lowered Karmelo Anthony’s bond from $1 million to $250,000, is a Black woman, and she has also been subjected to threats and had her personal and private information released to the public. 

“It is both heartbreaking and infuriating to see the depths of hate and bigotry still alive and well in our society,” Minister Dominique Alexander, president of the Next Generation Action Network, said in the press release. 

“No family should have to live under siege simply because they are demanding their constitutional rights. We will not be silent, and we will not back down. We are committed to doing whatever is necessary to protect this family and to ensure that justice is pursued without intimidation or fear.”

Along with the press release, NGAN included photos and videos documenting the harassment and intimidation tactics the family has faced. 

Multiple pizzas have been delivered to the family’s home, and an obituary for Austin Metcalf was sent to them in the mail. 

Doorbell camera footage shows an unidentified white male standing on their front porch looking around. When the doorbell camera alerts him that no one is home and he can leave a message, he leaves the porch only to go stand across the street from the home and either film it or photograph it with his phone. 

NewsOne has chosen not to share those images so as not to reveal where the family lives. 

NGAN’s internal security team is working with local law enforcement to keep the Anthony family safe. 

SEE ALSO:

Double Standard: Karmelo Anthony Can’t Claim Self-Defense But Kyle Rittenhouse Can?

Op-Ed: I Get Karmelo Anthony, I Carried A Knife To School Too

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