Shadows of Tombstone

In the 1800s, after rancher Rex Allen captures the bank robber Manuel Delgado, Sheriff Webb, who is up for re-election in the town of Shadow Rock, tries to take credit for it. However, secretly Webb is unhappy, because Delgado paid him off to lead the posse astray, and he fears the robber might tell this to the judge when he comes to trial. Webb also takes payoffs from Mike Jessup, the owner of the Gold Flame, a crooked gambling hall in town. Both Rex and his friend, Slim Pickens, urge Slim's boss Marge, a second-generation newspaper publisher, to help expose the corruption in town, but she fears Webb's retaliation. However, when Slim overhears that fellow citizen Ed Phillips was beaten up after complaining that Mike cheated him, she agrees to interview the rancher. Meanwhile, Webb and Mike have agreed that Mike should "finish the job," so Mike and a henchman ride out ahead of Marge and Rex to kill Ed. After finding Ed shot, Rex chases and kills the henchman, but Mike gets away unseen. Feeling that she cannot remain passive about murder, Marge offers Rex the newspaper's support, if he runs against Webb. When Webb learns that Rex might campaign, he decides to contrive a way to arrest Rex and hold him until after the election. Meanwhile, Slim has marked some bills and is gambling at the Gold Flame, hoping to gather tangible proof of fraud. After finding a poker chip from the gambling hall on the henchman's body, Rex joins Slim, and sees Mike switch cards in a poker game. Rex confronts Mike and a lengthy fistfight ensues, which gives Webb an opportunity to hold Rex and Slim on charges of property damage and disturbing the peace. Webb illegally sets no bail and even considers pinning Ed's death on Rex, but Marge stands up to him, despite his threats. Realizing that he has three problems in his jail and wants all of them dead, Webb hires gunmen to watch the door of his office and sets up an opportunity for a jailbreak. With blank bullets in his gun, Webb then opens Delgado's cell, giving him access to his gun. When Delgado grabs the gun and tries to force all of them out of the office, he is shot and killed by the gunmen. After locking up Webb, Rex and Slim exchange fire with the gunmen and escape to the newspaper office. There Rex asks Marge to print one copy each of two sets of headlines and early the next morning delivers the special editions. After leading a posse on a futile search for Rex and Slim, Webb reads his copy, which reports that Mike has accused him of taking payoffs. Webb orders his deputy to destroy the newspaper equipment, then goes to the gambling hall and threatens to expose Mike with a list of all the payoffs he received, which Webb keeps in his safe. Mike has read his personalized copy of the paper, which reports that Webb has ordered the Gold Flame closed due to corruption, but after they realize that the papers are phony, Webb admits he was bluffing. However, Slim, who was spying on their meeting and heard about the list, alerts Rex and they break into Webb's safe. Although they find no list, they do find the marked bills they planted at the Gold Flame. When they try to leave, Mike and his henchmen chase after them. Slim is shot as they ride out of town, but he and Rex hide among rocks and hold off the outlaws with gunfire. Meanwhile, Marge has rounded up members of the Citizens' Committee, who arrive to arrest Mike and the outlaws just as Rex and Slim are running out of ammunition. When he sees Webb escape, Rex follows and shoots him with his last bullet. Later, after Marge shows Rex and Slim the latest edition announcing Rex's election to the sheriff's office, Slim agrees to be his deputy.