Kody Scott

The only person to take the stand in the punishment phase was Karmelo Anthony's mother. She begged for mercy. 'Please have mercy on my son,' Hayes sobbed as she looked at the jury. Both sides have closed out their cases. The court is now working on a charging document and will return.

The Karmelo Anthony verdict shows that the justice system has reverted back to the Jim Crow South era. It is no longer about evidence. It is no longer about right or wrong. It is about keeping racial score through the prosecution and imprisonment of Black people. It was no surprise that an all white jury would find a 19 year old kid, who was bullied and harassed by two 6’1” bullies, guilty of murder while he was minding his business. We have seen this story before. A young Black man is put on trial, and somehow the burden shifts from what happened to him, to why he should not have defended himself. The facts become secondary. The optics become everything. The outcome feels predetermined long before the verdict is read. People will tell you not to make it about race. But race has always been part of the story in America. The hard truth is that many Black people no longer believe they will receive the benefit of the doubt when their freedom is on the line. And verdicts like this are exactly why. At some point, we have to stop pretending that everyone is playing by the same set of rules. Because the people watching this case saw something very different than what that jury claimed to see.

Austin ain’t here to see the verdict bc he should’ve kept his hands to himself 🤷🏾‍♀️

The Karmelo Anthony verdict shows that the justice system has reverted back to the Jim Crow South era. It is no longer about evidence. It is no longer about right or wrong. It is about keeping racial score through the prosecution and imprisonment of Black people. It was no surprise that an all white jury would find a 19 year old kid, who was bullied and harassed by two 6’1” bullies, guilty of murder while he was minding his business. We have seen this story before. A young Black man is put on trial, and somehow the burden shifts from what happened to him, to why he should not have defended himself. The facts become secondary. The optics become everything. The outcome feels predetermined long before the verdict is read. People will tell you not to make it about race. But race has always been part of the story in America. The hard truth is that many Black people no longer believe they will receive the benefit of the doubt when their freedom is on the line. And verdicts like this are exactly why. At some point, we have to stop pretending that everyone is playing by the same set of rules. Because the people watching this case saw something very different than what that jury claimed to see.

Currently going on outside the Karmelo Anthony trial courthouse 🤦

Karmelo Anthony’s parents wanted their son to live in a gated community, and now he will. So it all worked out for them in the end.

Karmelo Anthony supporter: "What do you want us to do at this point? What should I tell my 5 boys?"