A judge ruled Monday that murder victim Gary Triano's three children have a "superior" claim to $200,000 in a Colorado bank in his ex-wife's - and alleged killer's -Â name.
A defense attorney and private investigator who had worked for murder suspect Pamela Phillips were also seeking a cut of the cash.
But before anybody gets any funds, Phillips' claim on the money must be settled, said Pima County Superior Court Judge Scott Rash. Phillips, 55, is accused of orchestrating Triano's Nov. 1, 1996, pipe bomb death. Her trial is scheduled for April.
Triano's children filed a wrongful death suit against Phillips and were awarded $10 million in 2009.
Because of that judgment, Phillips was deemed indigent and assigned county-paid attorneys. The existence of the $200,000 came to light when the investigator and defense attorney filed court documents saying that shortly before her indictment, Phillips wrote two cashier's checks to herself for $200,000 and left the checks with them to be negotiated at a later date.
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David Olmsted, the investigator, and Philip Pitzer, the attorney, asked Rash to use those funds to pay them for services rendered.
But Elliot Glicksman and David Walker, the attorneys for Heather Triano Klindworth, Brian Triano and Melissa Gardner, argued that the money is part of the $10 million judgment owed them. The checks are now in the county's possession.
