Gary McLarty was called upon to testify at the murder trial for Robert Blake. Blake had been accused of approaching McLarty with an offer of $10,000 to murder his wife in 2001. He told the court that Blake suggested he "pop" his wife while she slept. McLarty testified that he turned Blake down. He said that Blake then approached another stuntman. Blake was thought by most to be the actual murderer, but was acquitted in a 2005 criminal trial. In a 2008 civil trial Blake was ordered to pay the victim's family $30 million. That was reduced initially to $15 million by the appeals court, and reportedly was ultimately settled out of court in 2013 for $2 million.