The Iron Sheriff 1957

In South Dakota, a stagecoach is robbed and its driver is killed. On his deathbed, the dying man Gene Walden I. Stanford Jolley names Sheriff Sam Galt Sterling Hayden as the man who fired the fatal shot, pointing to Sam’s son Benjie Galt Darryl Hickman as the killer. Benjie, who is engaged to Walden’s daughter, Kathi Walden Kathleen Nolan, is immediately taken into custody. Newspaper publisher Phil Quincy Kent Taylor presses for details, but Sheriff Galt refuses to reveal Walden’s accusation. The two men are in love with the same woman, Claire Constance Ford, whose father was a lawman killed in the line of duty.

To defend Benjie, Sam brings in a prominent lawyer, Roger Pollock Peter Miller, and hires detective Sutherland Mort Mills to help uncover the real culprits. As the investigation unfolds, the evidence points clearly toward Benjie, and Sam testifies about Walden’s account despite his lawyer’s warnings. Benjie is found guilty and sentenced to hang, a verdict that weighs heavily on the town and on Sam’s conscience.

Coins from the robbery are found in Kathi Walden’s hope chest, revealing a motive tied to Walden’s failing health and his wish to secure his daughter’s future. Leveret King Donovan, a telegraph operator who knew the stage’s schedule, ambushed the coach and murdered the driver, not realizing that the money had already been stolen. Walden’s belief that Benjie acted alone is challenged as new facts come to light. In the end, Sam tracks down Leveret and brings him to justice in time to save his son.