In a surprising development, Harland Braun, the lawyer who has represented Robert Blake since his wife was shot to death in May 2001, announced his resignation Monday after objecting to his client's decision to grant a jailhouse interview to ABC's Diane Sawyer, the Associated Press reports.

Late Monday night, hours after Braun's announcement, the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department declared that it would not allow the on-camera interview with Sawyer to take place.

"I think it's insane for a person charged with a crime to go on camera to answer questions about the case. No lawyer in the country would allow a defendant to do this," Braun said in a statement announcing he was dropping the high-profile case.

Once the Sheriff's Department made its announcement, it suddenly wasn't clear whether that would affect Braun's decision to resign. There could be a reprieve in the developments, however: It is up to the judge in the case whether to allow Braun to quit.

ABC had no comment.

Blake, 69, is charged with murdering his wife, Bonny Lee Bakley, 44, last year outside a restaurant where they had dined. A preliminary hearing is set for Dec. 11, and the ex-"Baretta" star is currently awaiting word on his appeal to the California Supreme Court to grant him bail as he awaits trial.

He has been behind bars since his arrest in April, and last month he gave a lengthy interview -- his first since being jailed -- to The Washington Post. In it, he came across as alternately upbeat and hopelessly depressed.