Carla and her boyfriend, Rodney,went to a Valentine's Day dance at the high school on Feb. 17, 1974, a Saturday night. Afterwards the couple met friends at a popular drive-through restaurant not far from Carla's South Fort Worth home. At approximately midnight, Carla needed to use the restroom, and Rodney drove her to a nearby bowling alley. Rodney walked her into the building and waited for her.

They were getting into the car when someone jerked open the passenger door and grabbed Carla. Rodney said he struggled with the attacker but was hit over the head and knocked unconscious. He does remember the man saying, "I'm going to kill you." Police later found a clip for a .22-caliber Ruger semi-automatic pistol lying in the parking lot and speculated that it had fallen from the kidnapper's pistol. When he awoke Carla was gone. Bleeding from his head, he drove to Carla's parents house to report her missing.

On February 20, 1974 Carla's body was found under a culvert near Benbrook Lane in Tarrant County. The medical examiner said Carla had apparently been drugged with morphine, raped, and kept alive for about two days before being strangled.

Carla Walker was an outgoing, athletic, and popular student at Western Hills High School.

If you have any information about this case, please contact:

Fort Worth Homicide Unit (817)392-4335 or Crimestoppers (817)469-TIPS.

Related Website

www.justiceforcarla.com contains information from a retired Fort Worth Detective.

Note: The detectives currently working the case do not subscribe to his suspicions or conclusions. Their comment was they have no viable suspect at this time.