Crime Stories with Nancy Grace - KAMELO ANTHONY SOBS: GUILTY IN STAB DEATH OF AUSTIN METCALF, 17, @ HS TRACK MEET

Episode Date: June 16, 2026

During a track meet between Memorial High School and Centennial High School in Frisco, Texas, light rain begins to fall, and athletes take cover under tents with their respective teams at Kuykendall Stadium. Memorial High School athlete Austin Metcalf finds Centennial High School athlete Karmelo Anthony under the Memorial High School tent and tells him he needs to move from under his team's tent. When Anthony refuses, words are exchanged, and Anthony tells Metcalf, "Touch me and see what happens." Centennial High School's Karmelo Anthony allegedly reaches inside his bag, grabs a knife, stabs Austin Metcalf in the chest, and runs away. As Metcalf's twin brother, Hunter, comes to his brother's aid, witnesses point out Anthony to a nearby middle school resource officer, who chases the suspect down. The school resource officer confronts Karmelo Anthony, telling him to put his hands up in the air. Anthony tells the officer, "I was protecting myself," claiming Metcalf "put his hands on" him. Anthony hears the officer say he has the "alleged stabbing suspect" in custody, and Anthony replies, "I'm not alleged. I did it." Anthony claims self-defense. Now a jury has found Anthony guilty and he has been sentenced to 35 years.  Father Jeff Metcalfe joins Nancy Grace. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an I-Heart podcast. Guaranteed Human. Crime Stories with Nancy Grace. Tonight with us live, Austin Metcalf, just 17 years old, stabbed dead. Joining us now, his father. This, after Carmelo Anthony,

found guilty in Austin's stab death at a high school track meet? Good evening. I'm Nancy Grace. This is Crime Stories. I want to thank you for being with us. The trial is over. The jury has spoken and the sentence is in.

A fatal stabbing over a seat and a tent? The jury only deliberated for three hours. Three hours defense really didn't have much of a shot. Because those three hours, you know that there's not a lot you could have done. This was going to be.

Guilty. Carmelo Anthony, guilty. Joining us tonight, a very special guest, now known across the world as Austin's dad. Jeff Metcalfe is joining us, who now, I believe, has racked up over 100 death threats. Okay, let me just remind everyone, you're the victim, your son, your twin boy, was stabbed through the heart with a piercing stab that not only punctured his heart, but was so brutal, so vicious, it went all the way into Austin's bone in his chest. There was no way he could survive, even though his twin brother tried and tried.

and tried there in the rain under that tent to save Austin's life. On that body cam, you can hear the twin screaming, screaming, praying, screaming all at once trying to save his brother's life. And somehow, you're getting death threats. Explain.

I wish I had an explanation for it. I really don't understand. I mean, I understand people can be upset about the verdict and it didn't go the way they wanted to. But, I mean, it was a fair trial. And now they're claiming it's not. And I mean, I understand they're going to look for any avenue they hope and pray that they could get an appeal. I understand it's due process. They're entitled to it.

I really don't, I think the judge did a good job of keeping everything under control and in order and all procedures were followed correctly. So, you know, they're entitled to an appeal. I honestly don't think it will be granted, but, you know, that's the way the system works. And the system also works by being convicted of murder also. So. That's important, Mr. Metcalf. You stated convicted of murder. He was not convicted of manslaughter. He was not convicted of involuntary manslaughter.

The jury knew about those possibilities. He was convicted in first degree murder. And I want to clarify something that we have heard over and over and over that this was an all-white jury. It was not. That is a lie. There were Asian jurors. There were, I believe, this off the time of my head, three Hispanic jurors. There were jurors that were from the Middle East descent.

Yes. I mean, those are not white jurors. This jury pool, and I'm referring to the pettit jury, the pettit jury, not the pool of 200 that you bring in to strike. The Petit Jury is the 12 jurors and the alternates. In the Petit, petite, pettit jury, there were Hispanics, Asians, and people of Middle Eastern descent. So why is it just so convenient for people to say it was an all-white jury? It wasn't fair. That is not true.

They need a narrative to spin. I mean, they're hanging on for dear life at the end of the rope. And they're running out of time and they're running out of things to say and they're desperate. I was stunned. I don't know if you were, Mr. Metcalf, when the defense did not put the defendant on the stand. Because in every self-defense case I have ever prosecuted or investigated, you really have to hear from the defendant. You have to hear their side.

Nobody can self-defense is when, You, the defendant, are in immediate fear, immediate fear of serious, physical, bodily harm, or death. Immediate fear that you're going to die. Who else can describe your immediate fear other than you? Nobody. That said, he chose to take the Fifth Amendment. He did not testify. We can only wonder why.

but, well, I've definitely put the cart before the horse. Let's start at the beginning. I want to start with where you were and what happened the day that Austin was killed. I can remember it clear as day. I was standing in this room right here in my living room and the phone rang. It was Coach Jackson and he said he had received,

I needed a report that Austin Austin was stabbed at Kirkendahl Stadium. It took me about four minutes to get there. I lived very close to Kirkendahl Stadium. I was able to get there before, I mean, when they were putting Austin on the gurney. And that's when I saw his face and saw him and saw the blood. And I saw his, when I saw his face, I've seen death before and I knew it was gone and that image will probably never be gone out of my head. As soon as I was screaming at the EMTs, what hospital, what hospital?

Once I found that out, I just turned into what I call survival instinct mode. And I went into, okay, where's Hunter? I need to find Hunter. And so I went to Hunter. He was hysterical. I just tried to calm him down enough to where, you know, we prayed together. I said, let's get in the car. I need to get you.

Let's go to the hospital. We drove to the hospital. We're praying all along. I didn't really want to tell him what he already knew himself. When I saw the doctors walk in, I knew what they were fixing to say. And when they told us that Austin had passed away, way. Hunter just lost, I mean, we all lost it, but Hunter especially. And it took, it took five people to hold him down. We had to get him sedated and, you know, just admitted for a little bit.

And then we couldn't even see the body for hours because now it was a crime scene and they had to process the body. And so at that time, I mean, friends and families and students just started gathering at the hospital. And eventually, you know, everyone heard the news. And from there is where I just started to understand what I needed to do, what needed to get done, find burial plots, arrange, funeral arrangements. I mean, there was just a ton of things that had to be handled. And I was pretty much numb, I guess, in shock maybe.

Realistically, I think it's when God carried me the most because I was able to do, I was able to speak to some reporters and get the story out. And even to this day, when I go back and watch those interviews, I really don't remember a whole lot what I was saying. It's just been, it's been very hard for everyone. everyone, but I want to point out something that some people are, I think, are overlooking a lot is the miners that were there who saw it and who had to testify. And every one of those children are receiving counseling.

And I can't think, first, I want to say thank you to the parents for allowing your child to testify and do the right thing. because I know, you know, with me being swatted six times, my ex-wife, Megan, being swatted a few times, they were concerned. They were concerned for their own safety and for their kids' safety, which is totally understandable. But being able to, and this is why I think, I'm not for sure, but I think this is probably one of the reasons why the trial wasn't televised, because there were so many minors that were involved that they don't need to be, have they had to relive this day again, which just tears me apart for them. And no one says, you know, yes, I'm a victim. But realistically, all these other kids who saw this and have to live with it for the rest of their life,

they're victims too. And the ripple effect, ripple effect through his friends, through our family, it affects everyone, not just my family and the Antony family. And it's been really hard, especially being under the gag order for so long, while I just had to sit by and watch everyone trash my son and my family and spread lies and mistruths. And to this day, there's a certain part of people in the society that they can't accept the verdict. They can't accept the truth that was presented at trial. Those were the facts. They weren't opinions.

They weren't some made up crap. It was presented and the jury made a decision based on the evidence. But you're right. For a defendant not to testify in a self-defense case, it raised huge questions just for me. I mean, if I was accused of something, yes, I would want to get up there and sing my song and tell him this is exactly what happened. this is what I was thinking and this is what I did. For him not to even try to tell his side of the story tells me or lets me form my own opinion about why.

Well, what it tells me, Mr. Metcalfe is that he could not survive cross-examination on his story. No. That his lawyers thought it would be too dangerous into damaging to put him on the stand. That is why defendants typically don't take the stand. Because they cannot survive cross-examination, or their story will unravel.

For instance, if you did not intend to do a crime, why did you take a knife? And the knife has been greatly belittled in the press. The knife has been referred to as, hey, it's not even a deadly weapon. It's one inch. No, it's not. it's just a little shorter than the K-bar knife used in the Brian Coburger slaughter.

Look, I want to see it again, please. That is a deadly weapon. I mean, the law is that whatever causes a crime, whatever causes a murder is a deadly weapon. It can be a car, it can be fists, it can be feet, it can be anything, a baseball bat that results in a death. That is a deadly weapon. So I don't know why people are trying to minimize this.

I think I know why, Mr. Matt Keff, because the fact that you take, as you and I have discussed many times, obviously off air. Yes, ma'am. My son played soccer and my son did track, basketball, you name it. He's never taken a knife to attract me. Why did Carmelo and Anthony take a knife to attract me? That question only he can answer, and I guess we'll never know. I need to give credit where credits do. Bill Wazinsky, the ADA, Greg Willis, the DA, and the entire team of attorneys and investigators.

They did an outstanding job, and they worked, I know for a fact, seven days a week, two months before the trial, they didn't have a day off. They were prepared. They did their homework. And be honest, Bill destroyed even their witness. and after seeing the performance that Bill had done with the previous witnesses, I'm 100% sure that had a lot to do with them saying, we cannot put you up on the stand. This prosecutor will destroy you,

and it will make you look bad. And he's already looking bad enough. Well, in hindsight, this is what the Anthony, and I'm talking about Carmelo Anthony, the defendant, now convicted in the murder of Austin, your teen boy. This is what they have to say. Everyone actually lied on the stand. Everyone.

All of the witnesses' statements were inconsistent. All of them. We called about 17 eyewitnesses, and it was a very diverse group of young men and women that came into court to testify. And the jury that saw that quickly realized, This case was never about race. This case was about murder, plain and simple.

That's my friends at CBS 11 and Fox. First, you were hearing Mrs. Anthony speaking Carmelo Anthony's mother. She's sitting there along with Mr. Anthony. And you know what, Mr. Metcalf? I get it. Let me see Mr. Metcalfe, please. Mr. Metcalfe, I swear to you, if the angel Gabriel came down from heaven,

and told me to my face that my son or my daughter, my twins, had committed murder, I would say, you are a liar. You're lying. I wouldn't believe it because I don't want to believe it. So I understand where the parents are coming from. I get it. She says, but that is actually a phrase, an argument, that I would argue in closing arguments until I was blue.

in the face. Do you believe that every one of the state's witnesses are lying? All of them are lying, and he is the only one telling the truth? Does that make sense to you? No, because it's not true. But that is what the Anthony family, they truly believe, that all the witnesses lied. You were there, you were in court, gavel to gavel. What did the witnesses tell the judges? The judge. The jury under oath. Well, when she talks about discrepancies, there were some as far as the total exact recall of every detail, but every single witness said he was the aggressor. He was asked to leave multiple times.

One witness even says a couple of witnesses testified. They even heard Austin tell him, hey, I don't want to fight you, man, and attract me. And I understand because grief has many different stages and denial is one of those stages. And I think that's where they're living in right now. I think it would be hard to accept the fact that your son is going to prison. I mean, I understand it, but you also have to, you have to understand and show, they haven't shown any accountability or remorse. And that's what I have an issue with.

It's always playing the victim on their side, which the true victim in this whole case is my son, Austin. He's the one who was stabbed to death in the heart with a knife by your son. So I'm sorry you're in denial, but the facts have come out. You're going to have to live with those facts. And you're going to have to live with the fact that your son is a convicted felon murderer. who is sentenced to a time in prison. And that is the cold, hard truth.

Now, you can hang your hat on an appeal. And I understand if I'm a parent, I would do everything possible also to try to save my son. I understand from a parental point of view. But my parental point of view is if my son did this, I would hold him accountable. I would make him apologize. I would be profusely telling the other family, I am so sorry.

Is there anything I can do to help? I can't believe this happened. And that was not the reaction. It was from day one. Family members from this family, Kevin Hayes, posted a long list of just blatant lies, saying he was jumped, his phone was broken. There was a big fight. I hate to try to paint the other side like they're trying to lie, but the truth is they all came out with a bunch of lies.

Oh, it wasn't a knife. It was a clique sharpener. Well, no, that's been debunked. My boys were actually under the tent when Carmelo walked under the tent. The boys didn't walk up on him. We were already there. And as far as the video goes, yes, I've seen the enhanced video. The whole encounter between him and Austin lasted about 12 seconds. And you could see a push to the shoulder. Doesn't even make him take three steps back. It's a push.

And then there's an immediate stab immediately. And I mean, when you have... Well, isn't it true, Mr. Metcalfe that witnesses stated, and I want to circle back to what we learned at trial, not what was said before or after, but what evidence the jury heard? Isn't it true? Witnesses stated that. Carmelo Anthony said,

touch me and you'll see what happens. That does not sound like self-defense. That sounds like provoking. By the way, that video was showing you is from our friends at NBC. Didn't that come out in court or do I have it wrong? Yes, it did come out in court. And yes, he did say that. There was also some other things, some more colorful language that he used,

that he used, but I'm not going to use that language on air. But there was other provocative gestures and words that were also used that was just basically antagonizing. Well, here's the deal. Here's the deal, Mr. Metcalf. Yes. Under the law, we look at, when you have a self-defense case,

the first thing you do is say, who's the aggressor? In this case, Carmelo Anthony now can of murder by a jury that is not all white, goes over to your son's tent. They're all seated. Most of them are seated under the tent. It's drizzling. I've been to a million games, a million track meets, soccer, football, you name it. It rains.

And everybody just sits there. It's no big deal. It's kind of expected. You're going to get rained out. You're going to be in the rain. but Carmelo Anthony goes under your son's team tent. Nobody does that. You think Wimbi of the Spurs?

Wembe Yama's going to go sit on the next bench? No, you don't do that. Nobody does that. So why would he go? Unprovoked, had never met your son. That was established too. Goes under your son, team tent with a knife. That makes him the aggressor under the law.

He was repeatedly asked to leave. He says, touch me and find out what happens with his hand in his pack on the knife. Your son goes like that, he takes out a knife and stabs him in the heart. That is what happened, according to all the witnesses. Do I have it right, Jeff? Yes, ma'am. That's exactly what happened. I mean, in Texas, there are elements you have to meet for self-defense.

But if provocation is involved, and also a lot of people understand the law in Texas, yes, we have a castle doctrine. Yes, we have a standard ground doctrine. Neither of those applied in this situation, if you know the law. We have a lot of armchair attorneys out in Facebook that think they know everything, which cracks me up. But when you look at the law itself and apply the five elements of self-defense in Texas, he didn't meet those. And the jury was showed the evidence and they determined that he was guilty. You know, I guess there's not much more I can say other than I wish he were to testify

because the big question remains why. And I'll be honest, once that verdict was read, that he was guilty, his parents and his advocates got up and left. They left that child for sentencing. They weren't there. She came in and read and did two sentence or two questions statement and then walked right back out, which was Kayla. And they weren't there for victim impact statements, our sentencing. They left that boy by himself to sit there to hear how many years and then to hear from our side of the family, and they weren't there. They abandoned that child.

I actually felt sorry for him at that moment. I could not believe it. Another fallacy, lie, in addition to stating that this was an all-white jury, I just want to get my facts absolutely correct. Dave, Matt, give me the jury breakdown real quick. Nancy, there were a total of 18 jurors, including alternates. And on that jury pool,

There were six minorities. So of the 18, okay? All included six minorities on the jury. 18 jurors including alternates six non-white, consisting of three Hispanics, of Middle Eastern descent, and Asian. One third of the petit jury pool. One third, 33.3% non-white.

That's one fallacy. The other fallacy is about the sentencing. Mr. Metcalfe, isn't it true? Carmelo Anthony could have been sentenced up to 99 years behind bars, but he got 35. And eligible for parole after 17 and a half. I mean, he could be out, he could still be out by 40. Pride Month, Toronto. Pride is an opportunity for you to create your own space, to celebrate your existence.

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Crime stories with Nancy Grace. And a lot of times in self-defense cases, the conventional wisdom is you're not going to win on self-defense. defense unless you call your client. So I was hoping he would take the stand. I was hoping jurors in our community would get to hear whatever story he chose to tell. And did Carmelo want to testify on his own behalf and was? It was based on everything. It didn't need nothing because everything they said on their self-defense. They have to prove it. They never proved. That is from our friends at Fox News and the Breakfast Club. The parents, and I get it.

Their T-shirt says, believe Carmelo. They want desperately to believe their son. I would want to believe my son. I would believe my son. But the son never took the stand, ever. So there was nothing to believe. I want to go back to being in the courtroom. I want to go back to when Austin was killed.

You stated Mr. Metcalf that you went to the hospital. You had Austin's twin with you, Hunter. How has this affected Hunter? It's obviously changed him forever. Hunter is the strongest person I know. He has shown me things I'm not even capable of. The other night, when he came by, we spoke. And I looked at him in the eye and I said, I need to have a chat with you.

And I said, when you stepped up on that witness stage to read your victim impact statement, you were a boy. When you stepped down, I saw a man. I've been trying to teach him, and I've been drilling it into his head for years. Learn communication. Learn how to articulate your words to express yourself and your feelings in a way where people can understand and identify. I said it will communication is a key for everything, your relationships, your wife, your business, your your friends, your family.

It's all about being able to be understood and effectively communicate that. And when he took that stand, I was really concerned because I I knew how he felt about Carmelo. And he followed my testimony, which I myself became very emotional during my victim impact statement. I, as they all, as many of who was in the courtroom, when I said grief is not sadness. Grief is rage, pure unfiltered rage. and from what people told me, because I really don't recall a lot of it until people told me, but they said I slammed my hand on the table, and I did tell him, look me in the eye, and he never

could raise his head the whole time and looked me in the eye. But Hunter got up there, calm, cool, direct, powerful words, asked that man to look him in the face. Carmelo looked him up for about four seconds and lowered his head again, and then proceeded to tell him what he took from him without becoming emotional, without screaming or yelling, just very monotone, very matter of fact. And when he stepped down, I'll be honest, I couldn't be more proud of my son ever, because I told him, I think what I was trying to teach you,

you showed me that you have it inside you now. I know you have it, you can do it. And it made me very proud of Hunter for him to be able at 18 after suffering the trauma, which I cannot even start to imagine, that he was able to maintain his composure, express his self articulately, and then walk away. Because I'll be honest, when I'm within five feet of the person who killed my son, I'm just glad there were a lot of bailiffs in that courtroom because it was very, very hard to keep my composure. And I can't imagine an 18-year-old boy who doesn't have 60 years of wisdom like I do displayed like he did better than me controlling himself.

So I tip my hat to Hunter. Mr. Metcalf, you were stating that you took him with you. He was in the car with you when you guys went to the hospital and what you were going through. What was Hunter doing at that time at the hospital? He was totally hysterical when I got to him in the locker room. I had to try to get him under control just to just, I just grabbed him and hugged him and prayed. And I had to give him to at least control his breathing at least a little just so I could get him under control enough just to get him. just to get him to my car.

In the car, he's still hysterical. We're still praying. I'm driving like a maniac to the hospital. And I didn't want to say it, but Hunter said, Dad, I saw his eyes roll back in his head. I saw his soul leave his body. And mine went with it. I didn't know how to respond to that. It crushed me.

Still does. When you walked out of the hospital that day and you stepped out doors from being inside, being told that Austin was dead, what went through your mind? What were you feeling? Well, there was no place to go, nothing to do, nothing to say. Nothing could help. Nothing could fix what happened. No, but I will say this.

The support that showed up at the hospital, there were there were probably 50 60 students parents family friends we had so many rooms full and out in the courtyard I mean there there were over 100 people there and that helped I didn't feel alone and the support I could feel I could feel I could feel I could could feel God doing his work. And he knew what we needed. And the support system that we have now and in place for Hunter, myself, Megan, you know, it's, I can't thank these people enough. And for the outpouring of support from people all across the nation that I don't even know who send me very, very nice text messages or even actually call me sometimes and just express to

to me, they tell me I'm some sort of inspiration. I mean, I'm just a man. And God works through many people in many ways.

I'm nothing special. But I do believe... Well, not according to the majority of the public is very special. And you stand for something, which is a

burden and a compliment, but it's a burden because everything you do or say is going to be scrutinized and it will mean something, either good or bad, to the crime victim community, which is millions and millions of people.

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Listen to IHard new music for 10 minutes and enter to win. Osiaga 2026. Every day you listen is another chance to win. Crime Stories with Nancy Grace. I want to share something that you said to me during the trial. I was away. I couldn't get to you. And the jury was deciding on the sentence. And you said, jury is deciding punishment as we speak. I wrote back, what is your hope? I was referring to, what do you think would be a fair sentence? And what you wrote back, I will never forget

because I was with my twins, as you know, and I wrote, what is your hope? And you wrote back that my son will walk through the door again. So it seems to me this whole time you have not been focused on

him going to prison for life or him getting a death penalty. It's not been about that. You just want your son to come back through the door. Yes. but I know the reality. And it's a hard pill to swallow.

When you wake up, does it sometimes feel like none of this ever happened? And then you realize it really did happen? Early on, early on, yeah, early on I had that, a little bit of denial. But I will tell you this, after the trial was over, I woke up for the first time without the high level of anxiety and dread and this. just dark feeling that just consumed me for so many months being under the gag order while I just watched the stuff being spread about my son not being able to say a word to anyone. But after the trial, I did wake up with a sense of, I didn't wake up with anxiety and dread and just,

I felt like getting out of bed for a change too. I mean, I just, it's been, it's very, it's very, It's been very hard on my mental health, spiritually, mentally, physically. It has drained me tremendously. And, you know, I'm still not back where I need to be. I mean, I'm not for sure. People don't understand. I mean, I know you, Nancy, we've spoken, and you understand loss. We've spoken about your personal loss, too.

And people don't understand a loss that you lose someone. I went through a grief group for 13 weeks with my church. And I'm the only person in the group who didn't lose a spouse. And everybody was said, your loss is so much different than our loss. And I wasn't trying to minimize their loss, but everyone recognized that losing a child is not a natural procession in life. It's not the right order. You should never bury your children. And, you know, I watched one of my grandmothers bury.

two of her sons and I saw what it did to her. And I was young at the time. So I wasn't fully capable of understanding the whole concept and realm of grief and death. And, you know, they were my uncles. I loved them. I was still a kid. But, you know, now I look back about what my grandmother went through and now what I have to go through. And for any parent out there who has lost a child,

It's a smaller club. Membership dues are high. It's not something you really want to be a member of. I didn't ask for it, but I was given, as my ex-wife put in her victim impact statement, he was given 35 years. We were all given a life sentence. Yes, he could have got 99 years.

The jury chose 35. He's eligible for parole in 17 and that. I remember Mr. McHaff after my fiance was murdered, people would say, well, what do you want to happen to the killer? And I remember at the time, I don't feel that way now, but at the time, I would say, I don't care, it doesn't even matter. Keith is dead. Yes. None of it matters.

It doesn't matter. And that same thing happened when I walked by the defendant's table and look down. All the defense attorneys looked down. It couldn't look at me in the eye. and the defendant looked down, would not look at me in the eye. I mean, I think if it had been me charged, I would be screaming. I didn't do it. I'm sorry.

I'm sorry what happened, but I didn't do it. I didn't do it. Nothing. Wouldn't even look up. I've got a question. I've seen this asked many times online, so I'm going to ask you for them. Do you ever feel that Austin is going to? communicated with you.

Many times. So me, Hunter and Austin, since they were two, we always went hunting and fishing all the time. And this year, you know, they talk about the first. So July 31st, obviously is their birthdays. I had to go through that without Austin. And then you have holidays, Thanksgiving, empty chair, Christmas, packages that go unopened. And after Christmas, I was out hunting on a new place because we had lost the place that we had had for 16 years. They had decided to sell and we had to move on.

And I didn't know if I was ever going to even going to hunt again, to be honest. Oh, there's some of them. That's a great picture. And I'm sitting there all alone in the woods. And on Facebook, they have, you know, that has this memories that pop up, you know, from past years or whatever. And it popped up. And it was the video of Austin that I did when he shot his first buck. And I did like this little interview with him and it went back and forth.

And it was, I'll tell you this. every deer in that county was safe at that moment because I couldn't see to my scope. I sat there for two hours in the middle of the woods and just cried. But the dream I had the day after he was killed, he came to me and his little camo and his little smirky smile. And he always called me pops. And he said, pops, I'm okay. And that was it.

I woke up. And I cried for hours. And just the other night, I was on my back porch just sitting out there in the swing and just thinking about him. And this cardinal comes and lands on my fence and sit there and looks at me. And I don't know if some people know or some people leave, but cardinals are a sign of people that have passed on and I've come back to visit you to let you know. and all the there's little things that that happen that he lets me know he's still here and when I went out to his grave the other day I actually just laid down on the ground and held him and he hugged me back I know where he's at Austin so competitive I told him

son you beat me again you know you beat me there but i'm coming i don't know when but i'll see you again and we'll sit down and you can tell me why and i'll ask god why but until then i really won't have any understanding i just have to lean into god's plan and his understanding and uh trust i just trust god and he's the only reason i'm still here uh i'm glad both my boys uh new new christ and what you know Jesus Christ was their Savior. So, I mean, I don't have any doubt whatsoever that Austin is in heaven. And I'm sure, and I pray that I live my life in a Christian way enough to get my name put in the book too. So I can see my son again, which I totally believe.

Mr. Metcalf, I was just about to ask you what is your message tonight. But I believe that you just told me. I want you to know that prayers are lifted up for you and for Hunter for Austin. And Megan.

All day. Megan also. His mother. Yes. And Megan. Well, people talk about, you know, my boys come from a broken home. I'm sorry.

Megan's. a great mom. I'm a good dad. We raised those boys. I mean, they live an hour away. I mean, we're minutes apart. And I showed up. I mean, I got tons of pictures from day one since they were born. I was never an absent father. I never once laid a hand on any woman in my entire life. I mean, the stuff that's out there that, you know, oh, that Austin broke me and wop my ass and stuff, I think that was a jujitsu injury from years ago that I finally had to get my shoulder replaced after I did shoulder rotor cuff surgery the year before. So that incident they talk about was years ago. And we were just training.

It happens. I mean, I put myself in the wrong position. Mr. Metcalf, let me just stop you right there. Please. if you spend your days trying to correct all the lies that have been said about you, you won't have time to live. You're correct. And you have a very, very special boy that is watching you right now by the name of Hunter Metcalfe.

And he's looking to his father and his mother for the example you are given, giving him, about how to live his life. So forget about all the lies. I know they hurt. I know they're irritating. But you don't have time. You don't have time to look back. You don't have time to look to either side.

You better keep running, man. I don't need to defend myself to anyone. No, you don't. So please don't. I am. I am who I am. I stand by what I say. I stand by what I do.

I'll share this right now. Hunter is not even comfortable, comfortable with me doing interviews. And I understand his point of view, but I had to explain to him, you know, I've spoken with my counselor. For me to speak about Austin is part of my therapy and healing process. That's the way I will process the grief. Hunter processes it differently. Megan processes it differently. There is no playbook. There is no right or wrong. There is no timeline. Everyone, grief is something that each individual, has to experience and go through all the stages,

and how they do that is totally independent upon them. So, you know, it's a double-edged sword for me to come on and do interview sometimes because I know Hunter doesn't like it, but I have to do it for me, and I need to carry Austin's name on forever. Because there's been people that have taken advantage of me during this time. And it's terrible. What do you mean to take advantage of you?

how? I mean, I can call out people by name. I'm not for sure if I should or not, but I mean, you know, there are people that... Don't. Don't use names, but what happened? I'd love to use names, actually, but because what they did was they stole from me. And I couldn't believe someone would take advantage of a grieving father the way some people have. And I don't understand. Stole what? What happened? Well, I'm trying to make this as painless as possible because I'm trying to allow this person to correct the mistake they made. But, you know, we were going to do something in honor of Austin. I won't go into great detail, but we invested in something and basically it was fraudulent.

These people, they were telling me one thing and doing another. And it's... So they took... money from a murder victim's family? Yes. Well, that's a whole other show, which I'm happy to do. Joining us tonight, speaking. You know, he's never really gotten to speak.

No. Without somebody throwing a hateful question at him, belittling him, trashing his son, trashing his family. I can just say this, Mr. Metcalfe. You are quite the example. Thank you for being with us tonight. Godspeed to you and your family,

and we will continue praying, praying without ceasing. Thank you. Thank you, Nancy. Great to see you again. And tonight, we remember American hero, Officer Kristen Yeager, Central Burke's Regional PD,

Pennsylvania, killed in the line of duty. She leaves behind her husband, Dustin. and three children, Tanner, Connor, and Carly, without a mother. American hero, Officer Kristen Yeager. Thank you to Mr. Metcalfe for joining us tonight. Nancy Gray signing off for tonight, but God willing, I'll see tomorrow night. And until then, good night, friends. This is an I-Heart podcast.

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