In 1998 Chilean judge Juan Guzman was assigned the first criminal cases against the country’s ex-dictator, General Augusto Pinochet. Guzman had supported Pinochet's 1973 anti-Communist coup that resulted in thousands of dead or "disappeared" persons. The film follows the judge as he uncovers one of the 20th century's most notorious episodes of human rights violation in the name of "higher ideals." This film received a 2009 Emmy nomination for Outstanding Historical Programming.