Lawyer’s role in Binion murder case questioned

Wednesday, Oct. 27, 1999 | 11:08 a.m.

When Sandy Murphy ran afoul of the terms of her house arrest last week, William Knudson was one of those coming to her rescue.

The Las Vegas lawyer told District Judge Joseph Bonaventure in court that he was having lunch with the accused killer at the upscale Aristocrat restaurant during part of the time Murphy had gone AWOL. Murphy is accused in the killing of former Las Vegas casino owner Ted Binion.

Bonaventure ended up ordering Murphy released from the Clark County Detention Center and back into house arrest, but not before he scolded the defendant and banned her from further lunches at the gourmet restaurant.

The 27-year-old Murphy, charged in the Sept. 17, 1998, slaying of Binion, is expected to be set free on Thursday.

For Knudson, a young civil lawyer who was admitted to the Nevada State Bar in 1996, last week's court appearance was the latest in an apparent series of efforts to provide cover for Murphy and co-defendant Rick Tabish in the Binion murdercase.

Much of Knudson's involvement in the case can be attributed to his work as an attorney for Murphy and Tabish, who were reported to be romantically involved at the time of Binion's death.

But that hasn't stopped investigators probing Binion's slaying from keeping an eye on Knudson.

Last spring, several months before Murphy and Tabish were charged with killing Binion, Chief Deputy District Attorney David Roger tried to question Knudson in the probe. But Knudson declined to talk, citing his attorney-client relationship with Murphy and Tabish.

Roger, the lead prosecutor in the case, later subpoenaed Knudson's mother, Jean Knudson, to testify before a grand jury assisting in the murder investigation.

During the grand jury proceedings, Knudson reportedly took at least one witness to the offices of Murphy's criminal attorneys prior to her appearance before the panel, sources near the investigation said.

Knudson, while displaying his loyalty to Murphy and Tabish, also refused to cooperate with Binion's $50 million estate, which was looking into the gambling figure's death and missing valuables.

Tom Dillard, a private detective hired by the estate, said Knudson asserted the attorney-client privilege when refusing to answer his questions.

Dillard said he was interested in the cellular phone conversations between Tabish and Knudson shortly after Binion's death.

"It's curious that Knudson always seems to surface in this case," once source close to the investigation said. "It appears that he's acting above and beyond the call of duty."

Another source added: "He seems to be acting more as a protector of Murphy and Tabish than their attorney."

Knudson could not be reached for comment.

The Sun has pieced together his ties to the murder investigation from interviews and documents circulated among prosecutors and defense lawyers.

Prosecutors expect Knudson's most important role will be providing an alibi for Murphy and Tabish in Binion's slaying.

Police have charged the two reported lovers with pumping Binion with drugs, suffocating him and stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of valuables. None of the items stolen from Binion's home, including a $300,000 collection of rare coins and currency, have been located by authorities.

On the day Binion was killed, cellular phone records viewed by Dillard show Tabish telephoned Knudson twice between 2:36 p.m. and 2:39 p.m. Murphy later reported discovering Binion's body on the floor of his 2408 Palomino Lane home at 3:55 p.m.

Murphy, who lived with Binion at the Palomino Lane home for three years, told Binion's neighbor, Janice Tanno, that she had lunch with Tabish and Knudson at the Z'Tejas Grill the day Binion died.

Tanno told Dillard that Murphy said she had left her purse with Tabish.

On the day after Binion's death, phone records show eight calls between Tabish and Knudson from 12:54 p.m. to 5:24 p.m.

Knudson was at Binion's home that day with Murphy, when police temporarily allowed her inside, and he still was there by 6 p.m., when he videotaped a Murphy-led tour of the house with James J. Brown, a lawyer for Binion's estate. Murphy is seen on the tape taking a wine glass, believed to have played a role in Binion's death.

Several days after the gambling figure's slaying, Murphy reportedly moved in temporarily with Knudson, and in the ensuing weeks she was seen being escorted around town at social functions.

On Sept. 20, 1998, the day after Tabish's arrest for trying to steal Binion's silver fortune in Pahrump, Knudson helped Murphy post Tabish's $100,000 bail.

Then on Sept. 22, 1998, on the morning of Binion's funeral, Knudson took Murphy to the offices of the Gaming Control Board, where Murphy appeared to lay groundwork for her defense.

Murphy told a top gaming agent that she believed Binion may have killed himself with drugs. She also maligned Binion's sister, Horseshoe Club owner Becky Behnen, and her husband, Nick Behnen.

About a week after Binion's murder, Tanya Cropp, a close Murphy friend who has since testified against the onetime topless dancer, picked up a list of coins from Murphy at Knudson's home. The list was written by Murphy and later faxed to Tabish in his hometown of Missoula, Mont. Police believe the coins on the list were stolen by Murphy and Tabish.

The 24-year-old Cropp told homicide detectives in July that Murphy had asked her to hold onto the list. At the time, Cropp, who had been Binion's secretary, was given a job working for Knudson.

Knudson, listed as the resident agent for Tabish's trucking and transportation companies in Las Vegas, also played a role in helping the struggling Montana contractor negotiate his debts in the weeks before Binion died.

Last July, as Murphy was put under house arrest, Knudson again offered to let her stay at his house. But he changed his mind at the last minute, and Murphy ended up returning to the Henderson apartment she once shared with Tabish.

Since then, Knudson had been keeping a low profile until he surfaced in court last week, as Murphy begged Bonaventure for freedom.