Fort Worth police solved her 1974 murder, but God is ‘head detective,’ brother says
A feeling of relief washed over Jim Walker when police told him an arrest had been made in the decades-old slaying of his teenage sister.
“When I heard about the arrest — I don’t think it’s hit me just yet,” Jim Walker said. “There was a little bit of a peace. I was emotionally still exhausted, but happy. I felt like this had finally come to a conclusion.”
Fort Worth police arrested a 77-year-old man Monday who is facing a capital murder charge in the 1974 cold case killing of Carla Walker, who was abducted during a date and found dead three days later.
Carla Walker, 17, was kidnapped and slain more than 46 years ago. According to Fort Worth police, investigators obtained a confession during an interview with the suspect, who was linked to the case by DNA.
The suspect, Glen Samuel McCurley, was in the Tarrant County Jail on Tuesday with bond set at $100,000, according to jail records.
Carla Walker’s brother Jim Walker told the Star-Telegram on Tuesday that he, the Walker family, and the whole community have been praying for this moment, for a multitude of prayers to be answered.
“God did this,” Jim Walker said.
For nearly half a century, true crime documentaries, podcasters, Facebook groups, news reporters, high school friends and just plain people who came across the mystery of Carla’s death put in work to keep her story alive, Jim Walker said.
There is a prayer group at Capstone Church that met every weekday morning and prayed that justice would be done in this case, he said.
“There were these incredibly ferocious detectives in Fort Worth who would not give up, who went about doing their work quietly and without publicity who brought us to where we are today. No one forgot her,” Jim Walker said. “But God is the head detective. He’s the one who put everything into alignment.”
Justice and forgiveness
Now, Jim Walker says he will pray for the man police have accused of causing his sister’s death, that he find salvation, that he repent.
“Because I want to see him in heaven,” Jim Walker said. “But that does not mean he should get out of jail free. There must be accountability.”
But there also must be forgiveness, he said.
Jim Walker said he watched his sister’s death devastate his parents, his family, as they bore their grief in silence. And when he was 12, when his sister’s death was still fresh in his mind, he said what happened made him bitter, angry and filled him with rage. Then later, God filled his heart and they sort of had a conversation.
“God gave me the ability to forgive,” Jim Walker said.
Families all over have been exposed to this same type of pain, he said. The unfolding of the Carla Walker story is here to give those families hope, her brother said.
Evil will come, but when it does, people have to fight not to let evil break their spirits or steal their hope, Jim Walker said. People must find it in their hearts to forgive.
“Unforgiveness is a cancer in your heart,” Jim Walker said. “Forgiveness is for us. Once you have forgiveness, you are free. And your lost loved ones need you to be their voice. Other families need to know that it’s OK to grieve, but you’re the only voice your loved one has, so you have to come out of it.”
The unfolding of the Carla Walker story should also be a message to those who have committed horrific acts in the past who have yet to atone for their deeds, Jim Walker said. Those who have taken a life, those who have caused unnecessary injury to others and believe they are walking free are operating under an illusion, he said.
“This should show you that law enforcement is coming for you,” Jim Walker said. “It’s not if you will get caught, it’s when.”
Jim Walker said those who are holding their past evils in secret should pray, because when they are finally caught they will be destroying more than themselves. Their families and their children will also suffer, he said.
“We have a new breed of news shows, a new breed of scientists, law enforcers, and the technology is getting better and better every day,” Jim Walker said. “They’re coming for you and you need to understand that. And you will be held accountable.”
The crime
The police investigation concluded that the kidnapping was conducted by a single person who attacked Carla and her boyfriend, Rodney McCoy, as they sat in his car outside a bowling alley, according to a family member.
McCoy went to the hospital that same night. He had been pistol whipped and lost consciousness, Jim Walker has said.
McCoy and Carla Walker were in the Ridglea Bowl parking lot after they had attended a Valentine’s dance when Carla was abducted on Feb. 17, 1974. Carla’s body was found three days later in a culvert near Lake Benbrook in Tarrant County, according to police.
According to her relatives, Carla Walker was a junior at Western Hills High School, while McCoy was a senior.
Police have said Carla Walker was beaten, tortured, raped and strangled, and then her assailant dumped her body near the lake.
The family continues to miss her. Their parents kept a really nice portrait of Carla Walker at the house and every morning their mother would touch the picture, Jim Walker said in a previous interview. It was her way of saying, “Good morning,” he said.
“My mom suffered in incredible silence,” he said. “Back in the ‘70s you didn’t have Dr. Phil showing up at your door or all this group support. I saw her. I knew she became clinically depressed.”
His mother recovered without ever getting over her loss, Walker explained. She was a strong woman, he said.
“It hurt my mother and I know it hurt my father, too,” Walker said. “They were Depression babies. They just sucked it up and kept moving forward.”
Both parents have passed away.
People have been praying for this case to be solved for years, the family has said.
“I feel like the hand of God is in this,” Jim Walker said in a 2019 interview. “This will be solved. This needs to be solved for Carla. These folks are earnestly looking for justice for Carla and we’re not going away.”
This story includes information from Star-Telegram archives.
This story was originally published September 22, 2020 at 9:42 AM.
