Two sides of Murphy shown

Monday, Feb. 21, 2000 | 11:16 a.m.

Jeff German is the Sun's senior investigative reporter. He can be reached at (702) 259-4067 or by e-mail at german@lasvegassun.com.

Attorneys in the Ted Binion murder case Friday showed two sides to Sandy Murphy, the woman accused of conspiring to kill the gambling figure.

At a hearing before District Judge Joseph Bonaventure, Murphy's lawyer, John Momot, portrayed Binion's live-in girlfriend as a caring person who picked up after the drug-addicted former casino executive.

Momot stuck to the defense theory that Binion overdosed on drugs, and Murphy, a one-time topless dancer who turned 28 on Sunday, has been victimized by the "Binion money machine," which can't accept how he died.

"You have a guy who's a heroin addict, a multimillionaire," Momot said. "If he was a porter at the Horseshoe Club instead of a famous guy, I don't think we would be here today.

"Obviously, there were a lot of enablers who surrounded him, who permitted this to go on, and I'm not talking about Sandy Murphy."

But Chief Deputy District Attorney David Roger, the lead prosecutor in the case, portrayed Murphy as a gold-digger who allegedly carried on an "illicit affair" with her co-defendant, Rick Tabish, while conspiring to kill the 55-year-old Binion for his money.

Roger alleged that Murphy and Tabish pumped Binion with drugs and suffocated him on Sept. 17, 1998. The accused killers, he said, then staged the death scene at Binion's 2408 Palomino Lane home.

One day after Binion's death, Roger charged, Murphy transformed herself from grieving girlfriend to materialistic heir looking to get her share of Binion's estate.

Her changed demeanor was captured on videotape during a tour of Binion's home in which she pointed out which possession she intended to keep in the upcoming battle over Binion's $50 million estate.

"Her conduct on Sept. 18, 1998, was far from the conduct that you would expect from a grieving widow," Roger said.

Murphy was also seen on the videotape appearing to pocket a wine glass investigators believe was used to pour a liquid mixture of drugs down Binion's throat, Roger said.

But Momot chastised police for failing to charge Peter Sheridan, the man who sold Binion 12 doses of tar heroin the night before his death.

Momot called Sheridan, who testified in court last August, "the devil himself, a piece of garbage.

"The only person trying to get Ted Binion off of drugs is in this courtroom, and she's charged with his murder," Momot said, pointing to a tearful Murphy. "I think the roles maybe should have been reversed in this scenario."

Roger, however, reminded Bonaventure that Binion himself suspected Murphy was trying to harm him.

He recounted a phone call Binion made to his estate lawyer, James J. Brown, the day before his death.

"He called James Brown and said to Brown, 'Get Sandy out of the will if she doesn't kill me tonight. If I'm dead, you'll know what happened to me,' " Roger told Bonaventure.

Murphy frequently whispered in Momot's ear, as Roger argued before the judge, prompting the prosecutor to stare coldly at the defendant several times as he spoke.

Bonaventure heard arguments Friday on defense writs seeking to dismiss the charges because of insufficient evidence presented by prosecutors.

He promised to issue a decision next Monday when he hears arguments on additional defense motions aimed at tossing out evidence in the case.