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Bloody towel at center of hearing involving accused killer of Temple couple

Cedric Marks' defense team filed a motion Thursday to ensure any DNA testing done on a bloody towel will be video recorded.

BELTON, Texas — Editor's note: The attached video is from an earlier article when Bell County District Attorney Henry Garza announced he would seek the death penalty for Marks.

A motion filed Thursday during a hearing for double-murder suspect Cedric Marks asked that more than 100 items be tested for DNA.

Among the items is a light green towel with seven spots of blood on it. Marks' defense team asked that testing on the towel be video recorded.

Marks faces charges of tampering with evidence, burglary and capital murder related to the deaths of his ex-girlfriend Jenna Scott and her friend Michael Swearingin. 

Judge Fancy Jezek of the 426th District Court was expected to rule on the motion in a hearing Feb. 27 when a witness will be called to testify about the towel.

During Marks' last hearing in October, Jezek passed a defense motion that would allow Marks to wear street clothes with no shackles during the jury selection and actual trial.

Marks told the court last May he was "absolutely not guilty" of any charges.

According to the office of Bell County District Attorney Henry Garza, prosecutors will be pushing for the death penalty. 

Scott and Swearingin went missing on Jan. 4, 2019, according to their families and police. Police said their bodies were found in a rural Oklahoma town on Jan. 15.

Marks was arrested in Michigan soon after. During his extradition to Bell County, he escaped from a private prison transport company then led police on a 9-hour manhunt in Montgomery County before he was found hiding in a trash can and booked into the Bell County Jail.

The woman who is believed to have helped Marks in the deaths of Scott and Swearingin, Maya Maxwell, gave birth to a boy behind bars on June 4.

Maxwell is charged with tampering with physical evidence and two counts of murder. She remains in the Bell County jail on a $750,000 bond.

RELATED: Prosecutors push for death penalty for accused killer Cedric Marks

RELATED: ‘There was no Houdini move to it:’ Former agent details how accused killer Cedric Marks escaped prison van

RELATE: 'Absolutely not guilty': Accused killer Cedric Marks makes plea in Bell County court

RELATE: Judge raises bonds for suspects accused of murdering Temple duo

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