Emmet Foley, a decorated but troubled Korean War vet suffering from PTSS and impotence, has a breakdown and goes on a shooting spree in his neighborhood, subliminally hoping to commit “suicide by cop.” Failing that, he shoots himself in the chest but survives to be sentenced to a “maximum security” mental health facility in 1955 Florida. While recovering, he begins to feel a sense of rage over the mistreatment and open abuse of his fellow inmates, whose needs are ignored in an atmosphere of neglect and filth. With the help of another inmate and his faithful sister, he begins a campaign against the entrenched bureaucracy to improve conditions for his fellow patients.