The vicious Hayes clan amble into town on the day Judge Jim Scott is expected to sentence murderer Rudy Hayes to hang. Scott, who doesn't wear a gun, seems unconcerned and businesslike, even when Charlie Hayes makes an explicit death threat against him. But the townsfolk start wondering how much bloodshed one hanging is worth. Complicating factor: the sheriff, Scott's chief ally, is also the secret lover of Scott's fiancee Myra...