 After escaping from Pennsylvania s Lewisburg maximum security prison and stealing $2,000,000 from a bank, three violent thieves -- Ted Handy, Ray "Sonny" Bonner, and Shephard "Shep" Wilcox -- take school bus driver Donna Harkstrawn, deaf teacher Melanie Charrol, and her deaf students hostage inside of an abandoned slaughterhouse in upstate New York. The students are Susan, Sam, Annie, Jocelyn, Emily, Kevin, and an asthmatic girl named Beverly. John Potter, a federal agent whose reputation has been blemished by a hostage situation that went awry, takes over negotiations. Ted is clearly in charge over Sonny and Shep. Ted decides to let Donna go, but before Donna can make it to safety, Ted fires a shot that kills Donna, then Ted warns that this is just a sample of what he ll do if any of his demands are not met. Potter s handling of the situation is interfered with by New York State Assistant Attorney General Roland W. Marks, as Potter enlists the help of Sharon Foster, the negotiator who talked Ted into surrendering in the hostage situation that got Ted put in prison. But Sharon is not who she says she is, and Potter must take it upon himself to rescue the hostages.