Sophie Humbert - a famous criminal attorney who heads a prestigious law firm that does a good deal of work for the Police Commission - decides to take over the pro bono defense of Gabriel Etchegaray, a petty criminal who's just confessed to killing police officer Bertrand Malik. None of Sophie's friends or colleagues understand her move. Why would she take on a case that would normally be handled by a public defender? Why go up against the Police Commission and put her own reputation on the line? But Sophie alone knows that by saving the wayward youngster, she will save herself.