Miller County prosecutors want the jury selected for the trial of a former jail escapee to give him as much time behind bars as possible, if they convict him.

At a pretrial hearing last week before Circuit Judge Jim Hudson, Deputy Prosecutor Carlton Jones announced that his office had refiled multiple pending cases against Demarcus Lamar Cooks to include an allegation of being an habitual offender. The enhancement means Cooks will face a greater penalty range if convicted of any of the offenses with which he has been charged.

Cooks is scheduled for a jury trial in Decem...