5 key details about Lyntell Washington's murder

Lyntell Washington, a 40-year-old beloved teacher from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, disappeared without a trace in June 2016. What was even more baffling was that her 3-year-old daughter was found abandoned in a parking lot beside a car splattered with blood. The little kid had witnessed something so sinister that it could send chills down anyone's spine.

This saga will be chronicled in the upcoming episode of Bad Romance: A Special Edition of 20/20 in the episode that is set to air on Tuesday, April 15, 2025, at 10.01 PM EST. A logline for the episode, as released by ABC News, reads:

"When a passerby finds a 3-year-old girl with blood on her feet wandering alone in a parking lot, authorities embark on a multiday search for her missing mother: Lyntell Washington, a beloved Baton Rouge educator who was voted Teacher of the Year. When law enforcement finds the pregnant teacher shot in the head, they are also given a cryptic clue from her toddler. As investigators dig deeper, they learn Lyntell had a secret affair with a co-worker — a man whose own secrets and carefully constructed alibi raise even more disturbing questions."

This case is filled with details that have a big impact on the investigation and the ultimate conclusion. Ahead of the upcoming episode of Bad Romance, let us go over five such details.

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5 key details about the murder of Lyntell Washington

1) Lyntell Washington was pregnant with her killer's child

Lyntell Washington was seven months pregnant when she was shot to death and dumped in a ditch. Investigation soon revealed that she was pregnant with the child of Robert Marks, her co-worker with whom she was secretly having an affair.

Reports state that Robert Marks was trying not to take responsibility for the child. He was also reportedly afraid that his wife would find out about the affair.

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2) Lyntell Washington's daughter knew Robert Marks killed her and played a big role in solving the case

From the very start, Lyntell Washington's 3-year-old daughter claimed that "Mr. Robbie" had left her in the parking lot. She also claimed things like Mr. Robbie had hurt her mother and that her mother was asleep by the lake. She also claimed she heard a loud bang.

When Washington's body was found, it turned out that she was indeed shot to death and thrown in a ditch. Authorities deduced that the little girl had seen the murder and was telling the truth.

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3) Robert Marks had lied to Lyntell Washington and was desperately trying to get rid of her

Robert Marks had told Lyntell that he was getting a divorce, as per Lyntell's friends. But this was far from the truth and when Lyntell got pregnant, text exchanges between them imply that Marks was trying to avoid his responsibility towards the unborn daughter. He also did not want his wife to find out about the affair.

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4) Robert Marks was having an affair with a third woman as well

Marks was reportedly also having an affair with Tramica Jackson, a woman about whom neither Marks' wife nor Lyntell Washington knew. Records showed that they had exchanged text messages and calls on the night of Washington's disappearance.

She later came forward to admit that she had picked Marks up that night from a location that was quite close to where Washington's daughter was found abandoned.

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5) The jury took only 30 minutes to decide Robert Marks' verdict

Though not a lot of concrete evidence was found, Robert Marks was found guilty by the jury after only 30 minutes of deliberation. He was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole and remains incarcerated as of today.

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The latest episode of Bad Romance: A Special Edition of 20/20 will cover this case in more detail.