Binion neighbor says Murphy was ‘totally out of control’

Tuesday, July 20, 1999 | 11:17 a.m.

A neighbor of Ted Binion's has described Sandy Murphy as "totally out of control" following news of the gambling figure's Sept. 17 death.

Murphy, who reported discovering her boyfriend's body at his home, has since been charged with Montana contractor Rick Tabish, her alleged lover, in Binion's murder.

At the death scene, the 27-year-old Murphy appeared overwhelmed with emotion and was transported to Valley Hospital by fire department paramedics.

The neighbor, Janice Tanno, told private detective Tom Dillard that she had never seen any one in such a state of hysteria.

She said she went to the hospital to console Murphy that evening and then let her stay overnight at her home.

The Sun has obtained a 26-page transcript of Dillard's Oct. 28 interview with Tanno. Dillard has been investigating Binion's death for his $30 million estate.

Asked to further describe Murphy's condition, Tanno replied: "Rambling, crying hysterically ... her knees were knocking. She couldn't walk. She was shaking ... She was absolutely in another state of mind ..."

The next day, after a night of sleep, the hysterics had disappeared, Tanno said.

Tanno told Dillard that Tabish showed up at the hospital the night of Binion's death, spoke to her alone for a few moments and later drove her to Tanno's home after she was released.

About an hour after Tanno had put Murphy to bed, a girlfriend, Linda Carroll, knocked on her door and asked to see Murphy.

Carroll, who later would testify before a Clark County grand jury investigating Binion's slaying, told Tanno she had driven to Las Vegas from California after she heard the news of his death and wanted to see her friend for a few minutes.

The two women, Tanno said, chatted for about a half-hour, and Carroll left and Murphy went back to bed.

Earlier this year, Carroll, who once worked at Cheetah's topless nightclub, was the subject of a nationwide police manhunt looking to bring her to Las Vegas to testify before the grand jury. She ended up coming here voluntarily, however.

In the morning, Tanno said, she returned from mass about 8:25 a.m. to find Tabish and Murphy talking in her cabana.

Tabish then took Murphy for a 15-minute ride in his black Mercedes, where they could chat by themselves, Tanno said.

Tanno told Dillard she suspected Murphy and Tabish had a close relationship.

She said Murphy told her that she had lunch with Tabish and her lawyer, William Knudson, at a Z'Tejas Grill on Sept. 17 before discovering Binion's body and that she had left her purse in Tabish's car.

Before Murphy left her house, Tanno said, Tabish had arranged for Murphy to stay at the Desert Inn.

Later that day, Tanno said, she saw Murphy and her mother at Binion's house.

Murphy, who's expecting to inherit the house, had gotten into a confrontation there with a lawyer for Binion's estate. Tabish reportedly showed up there to assist Murphy.

Earlier in the interview, Tanno said her son, Alex, told her he had seen Binion smoking heroin at his home the afternoon before his death.

Binion's body was found the next day with a liquid mixture of heroin and the prescription sedative Xanax in his stomach. An autopsy did not find heroin in his lungs.

Tanno also told Dillard that she believed Binion was in good spirits before his death and was not inclined to kill himself -- an opinion many of Binion's friends and family members have offered.