Set on an island in Puget Sound shortly after World War II. Carl Heine has drowned, and Kabuo Miyamoto, a fellow fisherman, is charged with Heine's murder. Covering the trial for the local newspaper is Ishmael Chambers, who was the first love of Hatsue, the defendants's wife. As the trial gets under way, the courtroom and the entire community are tense with suspicion and prejudice.