Detective Marlow sets out to find the missing wife of a publishing magnate. Several smack-arounds, one dead gigolo, a few angry cops, a booze-soaked frame-up and one dame in the lake later, Marlowe finds the killer and finds that he's also looking at the business end of a gun.

Illegal: Ambitious D.A. Victor Scott zealously prosecutes Ed Clary for a woman's murder. But as Clary walks to the electric chair, Scott receives evidence that exonerates the condemned man. Realizing that he's made a terrible mistake he tries to stop the execution, but is too late. Scott resigns as a prosecutor and enters private practice. He draws the attention of mob kingpin Frank Garland. Scott represents one of Garland's stooges on a murder rap...