Bruce Armstrong, an alcoholic and gambler, has accrued significant debts, including writing bad checks. To avoid jail, he is coerced by a corrupt Broadway producer, Tom Canfield, and his accomplice "Big Joe" Snead into a diamond-smuggling scheme. The accident: Early in the film, Bruce's reckless drinking leads to an accident that leaves his younger brother, Jimmy, crippled. A deadly deal: In the course of the smuggling plot, Bruce gets into a fight with Joe Snead and kills him in self-defense, though the diamonds are stolen by a third conspirator, Dude Talbot. The trial: Bruce is convicted and sentenced to the electric chair, as his young, crippled brother Jimmy is set to testify against him. However, Bruce has confessed to protect his brother from the weight of testifying. Redemption: Just before the execution, Talbot returns and confesses to the authorities, revealing that he stole the diamonds and that Bruce acted in self-defense. Bruce is released, and in a final act of redemption, his brother Jimmy is able to walk again.