Prosecutors will not seek death penalty against Fort Worth man accused in 1974 killing
Tarrant County prosecutors will not seek the death penalty against 78-year-old Glen McCurley, who is accused in the 1974 abduction and strangulation of a 17-year-old.
Tarrant County Assistant District Attorney Kim D’Avignon filed the state’s waiver of a death penalty on Thursday in the case of McCurley, who was arrested in 2020 in the slaying of 17-year-old Carla Walker.
“The decision to seek or not seek the death penalty is one of the most important decisions this office makes,” said Tarrant County Criminal District Attorney Sharen Wilson in a Thursday news release. “After much analysis, and with the support of the family of Carla Walker, we have determined that justice would best be served in the case waiving the death penalty and seeking a sentence which ensures this defendant will spend the rest of his days in prison.”
If convicted, the 78-year-old Fort Worth man faces a maximum of life in prison.
“We are continuing our investigation of the case,” said Steve Miears of Grapevine, one of McCurley’s attorneys, in a Thursday email. “There’s a tremendous amount of information to review.”
Fort Worth police believe McCurley, who had been living in Fort Worth for the last 30 years, is the man who abducted, raped and tortured the 17-year-old girl in 1974.
McCurley remained in the Tarrant County Jail on Thursday in lieu of $500,000 bond.
His capital murder trial is pending in Criminal District Court No. 1 in Fort Worth.
McCurley had been identified as a suspect early in the Walker investigation because he owned a .22 Ruger that matched a magazine found at the crime scene.
When he was questioned about it, McCurley said his wife had been in West Texas at the time of the murder and that his gun was stolen six weeks earlier, according to an affidavit.
He didn’t report the stolen gun, he said, because he was an ex-convict, according to the document. McCurley wasn’t questioned again until a DNA profile matching him was recently found, police said.
On Sept. 16, DNA that police collected from McCurley matched the DNA found on Walker’s bra. Detectives credited this discovery to technology that wasn’t available when DNA testing first became useful.
Asked what McCurley has been doing for the last 46 years, Fort Worth police reserve officer Jay Bennett said, “He’s been working here locally and just living a very normal life.”
McCurley was married and had two sons.
This report contains information from Fort Worth Star-Telegram archives.
This story was originally published May 6, 2021 at 11:36 AM with the headline "Prosecutors will not seek death penalty against Fort Worth man accused in 1974 killing."
