Spare the Rod, Spoil the Bandit

 is a mission in Red Dead Redemption.

Story
As you arrive at the Sherriff's office in Armadillo and walk into the Yellow 'X', a short cutscene will ensue revealing that a bunch of bandits have been riding around murdering and raping innocent townsfolk. The Sherriff, once again, asks for your help in silencing the good-for-nothing criminals. This mission requires you to ride along with the posse of men gathered to take the bandits out.

Walkthrough
You start off outside the Sherriff's office, mount your horse and ride with the Marshall and his men. You all will gallop along to the supposed locations of these bandits, as you ride around the posse will notice vultures flying high above some dead bodies. After investigating two or three campsites filled with bodies (make sure not to hang around the campsites to long, for example looting the bodies, or you will lose track of the Marshall and have to start over), your posse will round up at Ridgewood Farm, where things seem all too quiet. After searching the area for possible survivors or criminals, Marshall Johnson will call the posse to the barn to invade it and check for survivors or bandits. After gathering outside the door, it seems the barn wasn't full of bandits after all..

A young girl will run out of the barn explaining the bandits are holed up inside the Ridgewood Farmhouse (In the middle of Ridgewood Farm) The posse heads towards the house to investigate and as you do, bandits pour out and a gunfight will ensue.

Quickly dispatch all the bandits and head inside, watch carefully around the doorways and walls, as you make your way upstairs to save the few remaining survivors. You'll be able to save a couple before your put up against a bandit using a woman as a human shield, be sure to get this shot right as it'll cause you to Retry from Checkpoint and don't worry about bringing him in alive or dead, just put a bullet between his eyes for what him and his men have done.

After all the violence, the survivors are rounded up and are questioned for answers about more bandits. The hostages don't take the Marshall that seriously, but they tell the possible location of the main group of bandits. As you and the posse ride off, a deputy named Eli will tell the Marshall that all this massacre and rape stuff seems a lot like Bill Williamson's gang.

This will further incline you to chase these scumbags down, after finally catching up with the bandits, a cutscene will take place showing Bill Williamson and John Marston talking once again. This time Bill runs away and sends his goons and right hand man Norman Deek to finish the job, you and the posse hide in the broken down shack and fend off the bandits. After two waves of bandits, the mission will end with a cutscene showing Norman Deek getting caught. This may take you one step closer to finding Bill Williamson.. in the next mission that is.