Lawyers want Tabish-Murphy romance left out

By Matt Pordum

Tuesday, Oct. 5, 2004 | 10:46 a.m.

Attorneys for Rick Tabish and Sandy Murphy are asking a judge to keep information about the pair's romantic relationship out of a retrial scheduled to begin next week.

Tabish's attorneys, J. Tony Serra and Joseph Caramagno, filed a motion last week seeking to bar any evidence of a relationship between Tabish and Murphy from the trial.

Although Serra said he would mention during opening arguments that a "sexual relationship" occurred between Tabish and Murphy, he said any further mention of the relationship would impair his client's right to a fair trial.

Tabish and Murphy are charged with killing Binion in 1998. The former part-owner of Binion's Horseshoe was found dead in the Las Vegas home he shared with Murphy.

Previous convictions of the two were overturned by the Nevada Supreme Court.

Tabish's attorneys are asking District Judge Joseph Bonaventure keep the jury from hearing about credit card charges allegedly made by Tabish and Murphy at the Beverly Hills Hotel, clothes purchases made by Murphy at a men's clothing store for items not in Binion's size and statements from witness on comments both defendants allegedly made concerning their relationship.

Murphy's attorney, Michael Cristalli, has also asked the judge to bar prosecutors from calling Murphy's benefactor, William Fuller, as a witness. Fuller has posted Murphy's $200,000 bail and is financing her defense in the retrial.