Lt. Daniel Kaffee (Tom Cruise) is a glib young lawyer with a reputation for quick-fix plea bargains assigned to defend two Marines accused of murder. Kaffee has been picked because the brass want this case disposed of and forgotten before embarrassing information can come to light. Goaded by his defense partner, Kaffee confronts his fear of failure and puts his career on the line in a high stakes gamble to discover the truth.