Key figure in Upton divorce case has ties to Shelby County's notorious Dr. William Flynn Walker and one of Alabama's worst cases of child sexual abuse

Gincie Walker Upton

A central figure in the Upton v. Upton divorce case has strong connections to probably one of the worst cases of child sexual abuse in Alabama history.

Gincie Walker essentially was the daughter of Linda and Bill Upton when she began a sexual relationship with Bill, who is the multimillionaire president of Vulcan Steel Products in Pelham. That prompted Bill Upton to file for divorce from Linda, his wife of more than 30 years, and led to a case that included numerous dubious rulings by private judge Gary Pate.

Bill Upton, who generally was the beneficiary of Pate's rulings, has since married Gincie Walker (her name now is Gincie Walker Upton), and they live in Mountain Brook. Linda Upton has remarried and still lives in the marital residence after being forced to pay Bill Upton for his share of the property, despite egregious marital misconduct -- to which Bill Upton admitted in a deposition.

Where does child sexual abuse enter the picture? Gincie Walker Upton has been diagnosed with multiple-personality disorder, with roughly 30 distinct personalities. How did Ms. Upton come to have such a severe mental disability? Multiple factors probably are involved, but she was born into a family that apparently took dysfunction to levels most people cannot imagine.

Her biological father is Dr. William Flynn Walker. By all accounts that we've heard, Dr. Walker was a brilliant physician and a major figure in the evangelical religious movement in Shelby and south Jefferson counties. He was a leader at Briarwood Presbyterian Church before going on to start Evangel Christian School, a home-school ministry of Evangel Church PCA (Presbyterian Church of America) in Alabaster.

But Dr. William Flynn Walker's life behind the facade included horrifying acts against children. In October 2005, he was indicted on seven counts related to child sexual abuse. This is from a a Shelby County Reporter article on the case:

A well-known member of the Shelby County home-school community has been indicted by a federal grand jury for interstate transportation of children for illegal sex acts.

William Flynn Walker, 48, of Shelby, was charged in a seven-count indictment filed last week in U.S. District Court in Birmingham.

Walker is charged with transporting three different children across state lines between 1984 and 2004 and engaging in illegal sexual acts with them.

Our research indicates conservative religious and political figures have been remarkably quiet about the case from the outset. In fact, state law-enforcement officials in Shelby County reportedly ignored evidence of Walker's secret life until federal officials finally entered the picture when he transported children across state lines. Here is more from the Shelby County Reporter:

Walker is known in home-school circles for his role in the founding of Evangel Christian School, a Helena-based organization formed as a ministry of Evangel Church, PCA.

However, church leaders refused to comment on Walker’s official role at the church or with the home-school group.

If convicted on federal charges, Walker could face a maximum sentence of 130 years in prison and a fine of $1,750.

He also faces prosecution by the Shelby County District Attorney’s office, stemming from two sex-related charges filed in May.

Walker was arrested in Jefferson County, where he worked as a physician in Birmingham and charged with sexual abuse and first-degree sodomy.

Would Walker have gotten away with sodomy, sexual abuse, and other unspeakable acts involving children if he had not invoked federal jurisdiction by transporting children across state lines? Our guess is yes -- that powerful religious, political, and law-enforcement figures were determined to cover for him, probably because of his ties to Briarwood and Evangel Christian.

Evangel Christian PCA in Alabaster, AL

In August 2006, William Flynn Walker was sentenced to 27 years in federal prison, without the possibility of parole. He was sentenced to 20 years in prison on the state charges. He is due for release in 2033 and will be on state probation for the rest of his life. From a Shelby County Reporter article:

Shelby resident William Flynn Walker, 49, who was indicted last October on seven counts of transporting minors across state lines and engaging in sex acts with minors, was sentenced in federal court last week to serve 27 years in prison without the possibility of parole.

Walker was also sentenced to 20 years in prison in Shelby County district court in April. Walker will serve the two sentences concurrently.

Walker was sentenced on charges that he transported three separate children seven times over state lines to commit sex acts with them between 1984 and 2004.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Jim Phillips confirmed Monday that Walker will also be required to pay $100,000 in restitution for his crimes.

Strangely, the article does not say if Walker pleaded guilty or was convicted by a jury. In another strange twist, a search at al.com turns up nothing about the William Flynn Walker case--and I can find no photos of William Flynn Walker on the Web.

William Flynn Walker is being held at the Federal Correctional Institute at Butner, North Carolina. Here is information about him from the Federal Bureau of Prisons Web site:

WILLIAM FLYNN WALKER

Register Number: 25462-001

Age: 59

Race: White

Sex: Male

Located at: Butner Low FCI

Release Date: 11/15/2023

We are guessing that the 2023 release date is a mistake. A 27-year sentence should put his release at 2033, as stated in news reports.

Bill and Gincie Upton
(From facebook.com)

Was Gincie Walker Upton, as a child, one of her father's victims? Did he have accomplices who abused her and other children? It seems unlikely that Dr. Walker acted alone, although no one else has been implicated in the case. Was Gincie Walker abused in a way that led her to have multiple-personality disorder--and did that condition play a major role in the breakup of the Upton marriage?

This much seems clear: Linda Upton, who adopted four special-needs children and fostered numerous others, genuinely seemed to be trying to help a troubled youngster when she took Gincie Walker into her home. That led her husband to engage in abominable behavior, and Alabama's dysfunctional court system piled on by making sure Linda Upton would receive a division of property that was nowhere near what she was entitled to under the law.