Playing against type, Dean Martin is an ex-lawman who has decided to illegally profit from his abilities. He now owns most of the town of Jericho, and has hired a band of gunmen to enforce his edicts. Outside of town, Martin ambushes a stagecoach that is carrying a passenger, ex-marshal George Peppard. From a hidden spot in the brush, Martin shoots up the coach and rides away. Arriving in town, Peppard meets Jean Simmons who has refused Martin's attempts to take over operation of her stage line. After a few days, Peppard becomes attracted to Simmons, but he sees that the odds against them are too great, and is on the verge of leaving town. But, after Martin physically roughs up Simmons, Peppard organizes the few men in town who are willing to put up a fight, and attacks enterprises that are owned by Martin. Finally, in a showdown, Martin and Peppard battle it out, ironically in the same spot that Martin originally ambushed the stagecoach.