The local sheriff in Garrison, NJ, Freddy Heflin (Sylvester Stallone), tries to uphold the law in a town primarily inhabited by NYPD officers who live in Garrison, but work in the city — and, unofficially, “run” his town which is known as Cop Land. When NYPD “hero cop” Murray Babitch (Michael Rapaport) kills a couple of late-night joyriders on his way home to Garrison from a bar — after they sideswipe his car — his police “brothers” who all live in Garrison engage in a cover-up.

What really happened to Babitch and the two deceased motorists has become the subject of an intense media frenzy, bringing big-city internal affairs investigator Moe Tilden (Robert De Niro) onto the scene. Now, this small-town sheriff and big-city investigator are joining forces to uncover the secrets that will expose the corruption, change the rules and alter the entire landscape of Cop Land.