Roy Mitchell is an Assistant District Attorney in Dallas, Texas, assigned to the trial division. By a consensus of the local criminal defense attorneys, Mitchell is one of the best prosecutors in the office. Mitchell decides to handle a case in prosecuting Ulysses Carillo for attempting to murder Tony Medina. Medina has been left paralyzed as a result of this attempted murder. And it is this paralysis that becomes the motivating factor in Mitchell taking the case. This ulterior reason can be traced directly to Linden, Texas, a small town in the piney woods of east Texas where Roy Mitchell was raised.
Carillo, one of the largest cocaine dealers in Dallas, exerts pressure and threats upon Tony Medina, which results in Medina dropping the charges against Carillo. Obviously, to the true prosecutor, this infuriates Mitchell, but nothing can be done to prevent it. Carillo, of course, is relieved, and this allows him to continue his thriving narcotic dealings. All this time, Tony Medina, confined to his wheelchair, watches as Carillo destroys with drugs the lives of people.
From his first encounter with Tony Medina, Roy Mitchell establishes a personal friendship with Medina that continues to grow long after criminal charges have been dropped. All this time, the paralyzed victim's anger and disgust grow toward Carillo. It reaches its zenith when Tony convinces Mitchell to drive him by Carillo's house. Unbeknownst to Mitchell, when Tony is driven in front of Carillo's house--with Carillo and friends in the front yard--Tony pulls out a shotgun previously hidden from Mitchell and shoots and kills Ulysses Carillo.
The shooting is investigated by Frank Barnes a homicide detective in the Dallas Police Department. Barnes knew that Medina could not drive a vehicle because of his injuries. He is looking for the other person involved in the murder of Ulysses Carillo. When he discovers that this other person is his close personal and professional friend, Mitchell, he realizes that Roy overstepped his professional judgment and became personally involved. And it's this involvement that leads to Mitchell's arrest for murder. Because of Mitchell's involvement in the murders--however innocent it might be--he is charged with murder. The golden boy among all of the prosecutors in the State of Texas is charged with killing--or helping to kill--the sorriest, meanest, and most dangerous individual the City of Dallas has seen in many years.
The trial draws immense nationwide publicity. It also brings into service one of the nation's premier criminal defense attorneys, Travis Payne from Gunnison, Colorado.
How can Roy prove his innocence in the face of such strong circumstantial evidence that exists against him? The key rests with a surprise and secret defense witness known only to Travis Payne and no one else--not even Roy Mitchell. For unknown reasons, this witness, a good, honest, and credible individual testifies in his effort to save Roy Mitchell. Normally, it is the good guys who are prosecuting the bad guys. But the tables are turned somewhat, when here, it is the good guys being prosecuted for ridding society of the bad guys.
