Arthur Spear admitted using the phrase "depraved indifference" but he denied that the legal concept influenced the verdict. (Court TV)

LAS VEGAS (Court TV) —The foreman of the jury in the millionaire murder trial testified Monday that he mentioned an irrelevant and possibly prejudicial legal term during deliberations and even wrote the phrase on a homemade timeline used by other jurors.

However, Arthur Spear downplayed the use of the term "depraved indifference" when he took the stand in a hearing to determine whether Rick Tabish and Sandy Murphy should receive a new trial.

Ted Binion

Binion's live-in girlfriend, Sandy Murphy, and her lover, Rick Tabish, were convicted in May of murdering Binion, 55, a former casino executive worth $55 million, in a plot to steal his fortune and spring Murphy from a destructive relationship.

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"It was discussed probably no more than a minute or so and didn't have enough bearing on what we were pursuing," he said.

This issue is the heart of Tabish and Murphy's claims of jury misconduct. Defense attorneys allege the legal concept, which was not part of the trial and does not even exist in Nevada criminal statutes, "infected" the jury and led to the guilty verdict.

Lawyers for Tabish and Murphy cite statements by so-called "whistleblower" juror Joan Sanders, who says other jurors used the definition of "depraved indifference" to mislead her into convicting the pair. Sanders now says she believes they are not guilty. Under Nevada state law, Sanders' testimony about the discussions and thoughts of the jury members were barred from the court.

Defense attorneys were able to grill Spear about a timeline he created and distributed to fellow jurors during the penalty phase of the trial. A caption on the timeline reads "then they murdered him by just watching and letting him die..."

Spear said the caption was "partly" his definition of "depraved indifference," but denied that he or any other juror even defined the term during deliberations.

He rejected defense suggestions that he formed the definition by reading media reports from the Amadou Diallo case in his native New York, a state where depraved indifference is part of the criminal code.

"I think mainly most of my life I've heard the term used," he said.

The defense had no success in advancing the "depraved indifference" issue in its questioning of five other jurors Monday morning. Judith Shaw, Tu Cam Nguyen, Alice King, Doris Enterkin and Virginia Braden said they never heard the term mentioned during deliberations.

Doris Enterkin (Court TV)

Much of Spear's remaining time on the stand Monday focused on an exchange with bailiff Henry Pyla at the conclusion of the third day of testimony in the murder case. The defense has questioned the propriety of a private conversation between the bailiff and the foreman in the garage of the courthouse.

Spear said he and the other jurors were departing for the day when Pyla, who he knew as "Hank," said to him, "Have a good night. The judge will want a status update in the morning."

Spear acknowledged that he took the bailiff's words as a directive and prepared a letter apprising the judge on the jury's progress.

"I thought I'd better be prepared," said Spear. After other jurors reviewed the letter, Pyla delivered it to Judge Joseph Bonaventure.

Bailiff Henry Pyla (Court TV)

But while Pyla acknowledged the conversation during his turn on the stand, he denied making reference to any request for an update by the judge.

Pyla, who wore his brown bailiff's uniform, said that he exchanged small talk with Spear. Pyla said that the foreman complained about being tired from looking over documents, and that he urged him to get some rest.

He also testified that the any dialogue with jurors — whom he said were anonymous at the time — was unrelated to the case, such as "I didn't get potato salad with my sandwich" or "I locked my keys in my car."

"Those conversations which took place behind closed doors were theirs and theirs alone," he said.