Stuntman Lays Out Blake Murder Plot

Over the past three days, a troika of key prosecution witnesses in Robert Blake's murder trial have laid out the actor's alleged plans to, respectively, "pop," "whack" and "snuff" his wife, Bonny Lee Bakley.

On Wednesday, stuntman Ronald "Duffy" Hambleton took the stand, testifying that Blake told Hambleton he wanted Bakley "snuffed," took the stuntman on a tour of potential kill sites, offered Hambleton a weapon to use and gave him strategies for sneaking into Bakley's living quarters.

Hambleton told the court that Blake requested a meeting under the guise of discussing a script. Instead of hashing out movie ideas, Blake offered up a plot of his own. The actor took Hambleton on an unexpected drive, casing potential murder sites, one of which was very close to Vitello's, the restaurant where Bakley was fatally shot May 4, 2001.

"He wanted to drive me around, so I could see the lay of the land, to Vitello's, because he had already begun the discussion about getting rid of his wife," Hambleton said.

"He obviously had picked me out to do the job."

Hambleton said Blake offered an unregistered .25 caliber pistol to do the deed and suggested alternate sites, including the Grand Canyon and Laughlin, Nevada.

When Hambleton balked, he claimed Blake became frustrated, shouting, "If you're not going to do it, I sure as hell am."

Hambleton is the first witness to say he's certain that Blake wanted Bakley killed. Previous witnesses have said Blake hinted at it or spoke euphemistically but never outright said he wanted his wife dead. Prosecutors believe Blake wanted to murder Bakley so he could have sole custody of their daughter, Rose. Blake allegedly felt trapped by Bakley, who he saw as an unsavory ex-felon. Hambleton said Blake referred to her as "evil."

Blake's attorney, Gerald Schwartzbach, tried to discredit Hambleton's testimony, getting the former stuntman to admit to past abuse of methamphetamines and pointing out that, when first questions by police, he said he knew nothing about the case.

On Tuesday, a former mob enforcer who later became an actor and then a minister, was on the stand. Frank Minucci told jurors that Blake complained to him about a woman he got pregnant and offered Minucci a check that Minucci perceived as a solicitation to "whack somebody."

Minucci said that while he never met Blake in person, the actor called him and repeatedly said, "I'll kill her and the kid."

Minucci said he was in contact with Blake over a potential book project about his conversion from street thug to man of God. He added that in 1999, Blake started complaining about a "broad" and started throwing out some numbers.

"I said, 'What are you talking about? You want me to whack somebody?' " Minucci testified, adding that Blake told him not to discuss the matter any further over the telephone.

In following month, Minucci said he was twice sent envelopes with $500 in cash, something he thought was a payment for a future collaboration.

"He said he's got something really heavy for me to do. He said he would give me a blank signed check," Minucci testified. "He was screaming about a woman. He said, 'She's got me by the balls.' "

Schwartzbach tried to defuse Minucci's testimony on cross-examination by getting him to admit that he once told police, "If you made a list of all the people Blake wanted whacked, he would need a roll of toilet paper."

Minucci took the stand after another ex-stuntman, Gary "Whiz Kid" McLarty, recounted how Blake wanted to "pop" Bakley. But Schwartzbach got McLarty to admit to having had a nasty cocaine habit. And the prosecution's case took a bigger hit when the stuntman said Blake may have just been "insinuating" that he wanted Bakley dead.

"A lot of people want to strangle their wives at times," McLarty said, "and it was possible he was just venting his anger."

Testimony continues Thursday. The prosecution is expected to wrap its case by Monday, and then Blake's team gets to put on its show.

The actor has maintained his innocence throughout the trial. He faces life in prison if convicted.