Stiffer punishment sought for Murphy, Tabish

Monday, Sept. 11, 2000 | 11:16 a.m.

Prosecutors plan to ask District Judge Joseph Bonaventure this week to give Ted Binion's convicted killers more prison time.

Binion's 28-year-old girlfriend, Sandy Murphy, and her 35-year-old lover, Rick Tabish, are to be sentenced at 9:30 a.m. Friday for their roles in the former Horseshoe Club executive's Sept. 17, 1998, death.

In May, following their convictions, a jury recommended life in prison with the possibility of parole after 20 years on the first-degree murder charge.

Bonaventure on Friday also will sentence Murphy and Tabish on charges related to the theft of the 55-year-old Binion's valuables, including his $6 million silver fortune in Pahrump. Tabish was convicted of additional charges in the torture-extortion of a Las Vegas businessman two months before Binion's death.

"These crimes consisted of months of premeditation," Chief Deputy District Attorney David Roger, the lead prosecutor in the case, said Sunday. "Therefore, they should receive additional prison time."

Roger said Murphy and Tabish have "displayed a sense of arrogance" throughout the criminal proceedings.

"Their manipulation of witnesses and others in this investigation suggests that these defendants are not the typical convicted killers that the courts sentence," Roger said. "Their actions demand a stiffer punishment.

"It'll be interesting to see if they accept responsibility for Binion's death Friday morning."

Roger said he won't decide how much more time to ask for until he reviews the recommendation of the Nevada Department of Parole and Probation, which has been preparing a report for the sentencing.

Courthouse observers have speculated, however, that Roger could make a case that Tabish deserves a minimum of 10 additional years in prison and Murphy another five years.

Since Murphy and Tabish's May 19 convictions, Parole and Probation Department officers have conducted an in-depth background investigation into their lives and the circumstances surrounding Binion's slaying.

Both Murphy and Tabish have been interviewed, as well as Binion's 19-year-old daughter, Bonnie, the chief heir to the casino executive's $55 million estate.

Roger said Bonnie Binion, who has been attending college in the East, is coming to the sentencing but likely won't be asked to testify. Prosecutors don't plan to call any witnesses.

Defense lawyers, who are expected to argue against any additional jail time, have not indicated whether they'll present testimony.

The sentencing comes almost two years to the day that Binion's body was found at his 2408 Palomino Lane home.

Murphy and Tabish contended at their well-publicized trial that Binion, a known heroin user, died of a self-induced overdose. But prosecutors persuaded the 12-member jury that the two lovers pumped the gambling figure with drugs and suffocated him.

On Friday Bonaventure issued a 12-page decision denying Murphy and Tabish a new trial.

Bonaventure found there was no evidence to support defense claims of misconduct on the part of prosecutors or jurors.

He quoted a U.S. Supreme Court case that concluded a "defendant is entitled to fair trial, but not a perfect one."

Bonaventure said the jurors were not influenced by the introduction of the legal term "depraved indifference" during their eight days of deliberations.

And the defense wasn't harmed when it didn't receive FBI reports suggesting the mob once plotted to kill Binion with a heroin overdose, Bonaventure said.

Murphy and Tabish, who are in custody at the Clark County Detention Center, will be turned over to the Nevada prison system after Friday's sentencing.

Both have the option of appealing their convictions to the Nevada Supreme Court.

There has been talk that famed Harvard University law professor Alan Dershowitz might participate in their appeals. But Dershowitz has refused to say whether he'll get involved.