Jacob Pearman waived his right to appear in court Monday as attorneys argued over whether pictures of his stepson's injuries should be admissible during his child abuse case and murder trial set to being on Jan. 12, 2015.

Pearman is charged with murdering his wife Carla Pearman in their Blackman area home on Valentine's Day in 2013. He is also charged with child abuse for an incident in the days before the murder involving Carla's son.

Pearman confessed to punching and then choking his wife to death after they argued about his child abuse charges.

According to Pearman's confession, Carla Pearman told Jacob that she would not be attending a court hearing scheduled for the next day in regard to his child abuse charge. She also told him that he needed to move out of the home so she could regain custody of her son.

Pearman's defense attorney argued Monday that pictures of the child's injuries would inflame the jury. The judge said he would issue a written order in regards to the pictures. But, in court, he said the pictures did not appear to be inflammatory.

Another issue was a Facebook message between Carla and a friend. In the message the friend references Jacob Pearman's multiple affairs and the fact Carla had confronted him about it in the past.

Prosecutors want to include the message to prove Carla knew her husband was cheating on her before her death. Jacob's attorney called the message hearsay. The judge will also issue a written ruling on that message.