Judge grants delay in Blake's murder trial

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- A judge reluctantly granted actor Robert Blake a two-month delay in his murder trial Friday, with jury selection now set to start Nov. 1.
Superior Court Judge Darlene Schempp relented after Blake's new attorney asked for more time and prosecutors did not object.
"I have looked at the case with different eyes than people who preceded me and I'm pursuing things that have not been pursued," said M. Gerald Schwartzbach, who became Blake's attorney after Thomas Mesereau Jr. resigned in a dispute with the actor.
Prosecutor Shellie Samuels told the judge she anticipates a two-month trial, while Schwartzbach said his estimate is four months. The trial had been scheduled to get under way Sept. 9.
Blake, the former star of the "Baretta" TV series, is charged with murdering his 44-year-old wife, Bonny Bakley, on May 4, 2001.
She was shot to death in their car outside a restaurant where they had dined. Blake, 70, has said he is innocent.