Binion defendant doesn’t want to be tried with Mattsen

Greg Tuttle

Thursday, Sept. 28, 2000 | 10:51 a.m.

Michael David Milot has avoided much of the public spotlight that has shone on the sensational murder case of gaming figure Ted Binion.

But that spotlight has been so bright Milot stands no chance of receiving a fair trial if he is forced to enter the courtroom with the man who has garnered almost as much attention as Binion's convicted killers, Sandy Murphy and Rick Tabish, according to Milot's attorney.

Milot has filed a motion in District Court seeking a separate trial on charges related to the alleged theft of Binion's buried treasure. Milot is currently scheduled to stand trial with David Mattsen on Nov. 13.

But Mattsen's "erratic" behavior and the numerous media accounts of his escapades, including the failed treasure hunt last weekend at Binion's Pahrump ranch, could prejudice a jury against Milot, attorney Anthony Sgro said in the motion filed recently.

"Defendant Milot faces the 'spillover' prejudice generated by his co-defendant's statements and substantial media-documented exploits," Sgro said in the motion.

The hearing to consider the motion is scheduled for Monday.

To support his effort for a separate trial, Sgro attached with the motion copies of 13 newspaper articles. The articles chronicle several incidents involving Mattsen, Binion's former ranch manager, including the failed negotiations in February in which Mattsen's attorney is quoted as saying his client had "gone off the deep end."

"Since the beginning of this case, co-defendant Mattsen's statements and actions have made him a focal point of the media," according to the motion. "The 'Binion' case itself resulted in an unprecedented media frenzy, and co-defendant Mattsen appears to have embraced the attention the case has generated."

Mattsen, Milot and Tabish were arrested Sept. 19, 1998, while allegedly attempting to dig up Binion's underground vault in Pahrump containing $6 million in silver. Binion had been found dead inside his Las Vegas home just two days earlier.

Tabish and Murphy were convicted last month of killing Binion in a plot to steal his fortune. Both are now serving life sentences but will become eligible for parole in the future.

Mattsen and Milot have been charged with conspiracy, burglary and grand larceny.

Prosecutors recently offered to drop charges against Mattsen if he led them to more of Binion's fortune he claimed was buried at the Pahrump ranch property. But the treasure hunt Saturday was a bust.