Born in Hagerstown, MD, Mark grew up in Jacksonville, FL. He left home at the age of 15, he wandered the streets of Jacksonville, worked the orange groves in Brooksville, FL, then moved to Aransas Pass, where he learned to weld. Mark joined the Army in 1974 and also met and married Teresa Mata. Mark served five years in the Army and was honorably discharged. Mark and Teresa have three children and six grandchildren. Mark was elected in 1988 and 1990 as Mayor of Ingleside, TX. In 1996 Mark was arrested and charged with murder. In 1997, a Rockport, TX jury led to a hung jury and then an aquittal at a second trial in San Antonio. However, in spite of the Double Jeopardy laws, the Federal Government retried Mark in Fresno, CA in 1999 where he was found guilty conviction. While Mark admits guilt in other charges he continues to maintain his innocence in that murder conviction. In prison, Mark has become proficient at writing and an accomplished artist.