Karmelo Anthony isolated in jail as track meet killer appeals conviction, preps for prison stint

Karmelo Anthony was isolated in jail after he was taken into custody following his murder conviction on Tuesday.

He is now appealing his conviction as he prepares for his time in state prison. On Tuesday, he was taken to the Collin County Jail and was in isolation at the infirmary within the jail, Fox News Digital confirmed.

Anthony was transferred to the custody of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice on Wednesday to serve his prison sentence, the agency said. He was taken to the Pack Unit near Navasota.

Anthony was convicted of murder Tuesday and sentenced to 35 years behind bars for stabbing 17-year-old Austin Metcalf during a high school track meet in Frisco, Texas.

KARMELO ANTHONY FOUND GUILTY OF MURDER IN TEXAS TRACK MEET STABBING

He had been free during the trial but was taken into custody after he was convicted.

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Anthony has since filed a notice of appeal following his conviction, court records show.

WATCH: Karmelo Anthony supporter sounds off on verdict

Prosecutor Bill Wirskye and Collin County District Attorney Greg Willis spoke to Fox News’ Brooke Taylor on Wednesday and expressed relief that the jury convicted Anthony of murder.

“This was murder, plain and simple,” Wirskye said.

“I was relieved,” Willis said. “I was relieved for the family mostly.”

KARMELO ANTHONY DEFENSE RESTS, ATTORNEYS PREP FOR CLOSING ARGUMENTS BEFORE JURY DELIBERATES IN MURDER TRIAL

WATCH: Crowds clash outside Karmelo Anthony murder trial

“I think there’s a doubt in every lawyer’s mind. In every case you try. However, we were very, very confident going in,” Wirskye said. “The facts of this case were very clear. Never had anything to do with race, never had anything to do with self-defense, really.”

In an interview on Will Cain Country, Wirskye said that this case was “never about race.”

“This case was never about race because that was our position from day one. And I know we didn’t have cameras in the courtroom because of the age of many of the witnesses, but I want your viewers to know that we called about 17 eyewitnesses and it was a very diverse group of young men and women that came into court to testify,” he said. 

“The jury quickly realized this case was never about race,” he said. “This case was about murder, plain and simple.”

Wirskye said that he had hoped that Anthony would take the stand.

“In many criminal cases, we never hear from the defendant. The prosecutor in me, of course, wants to ask questions, wants to cross-examine. And a lot of times in self-defense cases, the conventional wisdom is you’re not going to win on self-defense unless you call your client,” he said. “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. But ultimately, it’s his decision under our Constitution, and we have to respect that.”

Anthony faced up to life in prison after being convicted of murder. He will be eligible for parole after serving half of his 35-year sentence.

Willis and Wirskye said they were satisfied with that sentence.

WATCH: Man outside of Karmelo Anthony trial weighs in on verdict

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Asked if there were any moments when prosecutors knew they had won, Wirskye pointed to the video.

“I think when the jury finally saw the videotape,” he told Taylor. “I think that really reinforced to them that Karmelo Anthony wasn’t surrounded. The kids under the tent were seated looking at their phones, and then the jury couldn’t help but be impressed by the parade of eyewitnesses that we were able to produce that all told the same story. All saw it the same way. Austin was in the right and Karmelo Anthony was in the wrong.”

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Prosecutors said their second witness stood out as a key piece to winning over the jury. Wirskye described the young man as “calm, cool and collected.”

“I think what stood out about his testimony, he said when I looked over there and saw Karmelo Anthony, he was staring off in the distance, but he looked like a man who had a plan that was fixing to do something,” he said. “And I thought that spoke volumes to the jury about what Karmelo Anthony had in his mind.”

Wirskye said he hopes one day “the light goes on and he’ll realize he did the wrong thing, and he can live a productive and law-abiding life, either behind bars or not.”

Fox News’ Margaret Kerkman contributed to this report.