Tuesday, April 16, 1996 | 11:59 a.m.
A lawyer for suspended Horseshoe Club executive Ted Binion acknowledged today he's being paid by the downtown casino to represent Binion in his battle with state gaming regulators.
"The Horseshoe hired me, and I represent Ted because they want him back," Richard Wright said today.
Deputy Attorneys General Donald Haight and Kirk Hendrick disclosed the financial relationship in a legal brief filed late Monday to show that Binion has been getting benefits from the Horseshoe since his 1994 suspension for drug abuse.
"This fact seems incredible considering who should know better than his own legal counsel that Binion cannot receive payments of any kind from the Horseshoe," Haight and Hendrick wrote in their 33-page brief.
"Certainly, for Binion to receive legal services from well-respected counsel, such as Mr. Wright, it must have a substantial economic value attached to it."
Wright would not say how much he's being paid, and he accused gaming agents of over-reaching in their zeal to drive his client from the industry.
"I've been working for the Horseshoe for years," Wright said. "And I'll continue to work for the Horseshoe. They can allege what they want."
Haight and Hendrick suggested the Horseshoe also may be paying Binion's other lawyers, Mark Ferrario, Harry Claiborne and Bruce Judd.
The State Gaming Control Board has asked the Horseshoe for records of legal fees it has paid on Binion's behalf.
The matter may be pursued further Thursday when the board resumes a closed-door investigative hearing on the 53-year-old Binion.
Haight and Hendrick said the Wright fees amount to more evidence that Binion has been receiving a variety of payments from the Horseshoe in violation of a September 1994 stipulation to stay out of the casino's operations.
Records obtained by the Control Board show Binion and his girlfriend, Sandy Murphy, authorized 44 comps at Horseshoe restaurants, several of which were for Murphy, since Binion signed the agreement.
Horseshoe limousines went to Binion's home more than 450 times during this period delivering food and picking up Binion and Murphy, records show.
Gaming agents estimated the tab for the limousine service at more than $11,000.
Binion also had built up a $50,000 line of credit at the Horseshoe in which he could buy flowers, airline tickets and food for parties, Haight and Hendrick said.
He also was driving a pickup owned by the Horseshoe and allowed the casino to pay for his health insurance during the suspension.
"Admittedly, when viewed separately, all of the items that Binion and Murphy received from the Horseshoe do not seem that significant," the two prosecutors said.
"However, when viewed against the backdrop of the (Nevada Gaming) Commission's order that Binion not receive payments of any kind or nature whatsoever, the totality of the free services demonstrate a strong disregard for the commission's intent."
Haight and Hendrick said Binion might have to pay taxes on the services.
The Control Board hopes to persuade the Gaming Commission April 29 that Binion violated the September 1994 stipulation and should be banned permanently from the casino industry.
The board contends Binion also violated the agreement by continuing to use drugs, a charge Binion denies even though three hair tests since October turned up traces of marijuana and cocaine in his system.
Haight and Hendrick said they intend to call Horseshoe Co-Presidents Jack Binion and Becky Behnen, Ted's brother and sister, as witnesses during the April 29 Gaming Commission hearing.
Murphy, who asserted her Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination before a closed-door investigative hearing last month, also is being subpoenaed.
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