Hunt was in a dangerous position. Joiner was still a folk hero to many in East Texas, and the Deep Rock “bribe” would look very bad to a local jury. As the January 1933 trial date approached—lawsuits moved quickly in those days—rumors swirled fast and furious, that Hunt was promising Joiner big money to settle, that he had unearthed dirt from his past, that threatening phone calls and letters had been sent to various Hunt men involved in the original deal. What happened next has never been explained. On January 16, 1933, just as a crowd of reporters and oil scouts took their seats in a
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