Walker Keel

Walker Keel was a human male introduced in the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode Conspiracy.

Keel had two sisters named Anne and Melissa. He was a friend of Jean-Luc Picard and Jack Crusher, meeting Picard at a bar on Tau Ceti III. The three remained close until various missions took them on different paths. Keel introduced a young Beverly Howard to Jack Crusher, and the pair eventually married.

By the 2348 Keel was a Starfleet Captain and was given command of the USS Horatio. He sent condolences to his friend Beverly Crusher upon the death of her husband Jack, but had to miss his friend's funeral due to his duties on the Horatio. The following year he expressed his regrets to Picard over the loss of the Stargazer.

In 2364 the Neural Parasites began to take over Federation and Starfleet personnel in their quest to take over the galaxy. While moving with great subtly to keep from being discovered too soon, the Parasite activity still raised the suspicions of Keel and a few of his fellow officers. These officers became aware of certain patterns emerging in Starfleet leadership that could threaten the very fabric of the United Federation of Planets. After their last visit to Earth Keel began to suspect that whatever was going on, his first officer and medical officer had become part of it as well.

Using the Captain's priority channel and code 47 Walker reached out to Captain Tryla Scott and Captain Rixx - two officers who felt as he did and summoned them to Dytallix B. He also convinced Picard to attend their meeting, and it was there that the three warned Picard of the growing threat to the Federation.

Keel died a short time later when the Horatio was sabotaged by the Parasites, destroying the ship with a loss of all hands. Starfleet officers under Parasite control attempted to cover up Keel's death by stating that the ship was destroyed due to his negligence, but they were exposed by Picard a short time later, and the Parasite infestation died out when Picard and Commander William Riker destroyed the Parasite queen.

In 2368 Commander Estrella Miyakawa remembered how she and her fellow Starfleet Academy classmates expected that Keel, Crusher, and Picard would move up the ranks in tandem, become noted Captains in the fleet, and return to teach the next generation of Starfleet leaders in the years to come. Reaching out to Picard for assistance, she reflected how fate had turned out differently than expected, with only Picard still alive.