MovieChat Forums > Hell or High Water (2016) Discussion > Legal Questions

Legal Questions

posted 8 years ago by johntatem62
11 replies | jump to latest

1. If it had been proved that Chris Pine was involved in the robberies/ bank customer killings could the feds have voided the trust setup for his two boys due to the fact it was funded through illegal means?

2. On a related note, I find it hard to believe that a search warrant couldn't been issued
for Chris Pine's bank accounts and properties. I realize that Texas Midland would now have a financial interest in ignoring his involvement but three people were murdered including a police officer.

[–] creatorof2002 8 years ago

1. I wonder if there is a "statute of limitations". Murder does not have one so he would still go to prison but I mean for voiding the trust. At the end of the movie both Chris Pine and the old Sheriff knew that the other knew about his involvement but the old guy could not PROVE it so all they could do was talk.

Lets say several years later proof is found and Chis Pine goes to prison for murder, it would be pretty unfair if his children who were impoverished BEFORE all this and have gotten used to being wealthy from the oil suddenly lost everything and ended up impoverished again. This could even extend to his grand children if enough years went by. None of this is their fault.

2. Why would the bank want to protect the person who robbed them? I am a tad confused on that.

[–] johntatem62 8 years ago

I may be wrong on this but I think Midland was administering the trust so they would get paid fees for that.

[–] hammerbutt 8 years ago

It seemed that Pine and the lawyer planned for the possibility of him getting caught the lawyer believed there was nothing the law could do.

[–] creatorof2002 8 years ago

That guy seemed to have a corrupt lawyer AND owner of a car lot on his side helping him maybe they hated the bank too?

If its just robbing banks fine money can be replaced but human beings cannot and they MURDERED three people, shouldn't that lawyer guy and the car lot owner be thinking twice now?

[–] Jeff0015 8 years ago

Feds were not involved. That was a big part of the plan.

[–] hero-de-celluloid 8 years ago

I find it hard to believe that a search warrant couldn't been issued
for Chris Pine's bank accounts and properties.

It's not easy to get a search warrant for someone who had no ties to the crime itself. You can't just get a search warrant because he was his brother. Other than that - he had no connection as far as the rangers knew. You can't go to a judge and say you have a feeling he's involved - they need to know facts on how he is connected - it doesn't have to be proof positive but there needs to be something more solid.

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[–] Skrbi 8 years ago

Regarding your first question, the Feds would indeed have a hard time tracing the money used to fund the trust. In the lawyer's office they mentioned that the trust would be funded by the casino check and wouldn't be traceable. They were smart to only steal money from cash drawers that couldn't be traced. They were doubly smart by taking that money to the casino and buying chips with it then cashing in the chips. You'll note that they never really used a lot of their chips. sounds like a pretty safe way to wash money.

If you can't prove the trust was funded illegaly I don't think the Feds could get at that trust

[–] reylaforet 8 years ago

Regarding your first question, the Feds would indeed have a hard time tracing the money used to fund the trust. In the lawyer's office they mentioned that the trust would be funded by the casino check and wouldn't be traceable. They were smart to only steal money from cash drawers that couldn't be traced. They were doubly smart by taking that money to the casino and buying chips with it then cashing in the chips. You'll note that they never really used a lot of their chips. sounds like a pretty safe way to wash money.

If you can't prove the trust was funded illegaly I don't think the Feds could get at that trust

I think the casino-laundering scheme was only to fool the bank -- so they wouldn't have to go into another bank with a ton of cash after a spate of robberies hit the news.

Once the plan exploded, and Tanner was killed, the casino-surveillance camera would show that they were gambling but never won anything. Plus, the casino-cashier would testify that Toby told her the large buy-in cash was from his selling his car. DMV records would show that he never sold a car.

[–] reylaforet 8 years ago

2. On a related note, I find it hard to believe that a search warrant couldn't been issued
for Chris Pine's bank accounts and properties. I realize that Texas Midland would now have a financial interest in ignoring his involvement but three people were murdered including a police officer.

Not only people murdered, but the bank was still out $40,000 from the robberies, and would demand a warrant into Toby's finances after he paid the foreclosure with $40,000 which he said he won in a casino after buying-in with cash that he told the casino-cashier he got from selling his car.

Casino-surveillance video would show they never won any money. DMV records would show they never sold a car for cash.

A warrant would be easy to get, since the bank was still missing $40,000 from the robberies (although they got the foreclosure money from the same suspects).

[–] bottleshock34 8 years ago

I haven't seen it yet it hits our shores in October but from what i have read and the script to toby never killed anyone it was tanner. So technically he can’t be charged with murder maybe as an accessory to manslaughter since it wasn’t intentional.
He would still get a long prison sentence for planning the robbery and committing the crime.

"Some of the worst things imaginable have been done with the best intentions"

[–] lisabwp 8 years ago

when a person is killed during a crime, in this case the robbery, whoever is committing the crime can be charged for murder even if the killing was accidental. its called felony murder. in texas it would be considered 1st degree murder and they both would likely get the death penalty.