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Baltimore Police Department
James Harris
Deputy Commissioner James Harris
Portrayed by: Al Freeman Jr.
The politically-minded, somewhat corrupt deputy commissioner of the BPD.
- Ambition Is Evil: He abandoned his principles for the sake of his career long ago and now only cares about his own status.
- Bad Boss: He's polite enough, but deeply vicious to his underlings if they cross him and very controlling of the ones that obey him.
- Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: He can be very charming and silver-tongued, easily able to win over even Frank. Beneath it though is a petty, self-centered man with a vicious cruel streak.
- Broken Pedestal: Pembleton clearly admires him at first, until Harris leaves him to take the heat for the Congressman Wade scandal and shows off how crooked and self-serving he really is.
- Chronic Backstabbing Disorder: After he and Pembleton cover up a Congressman's attempts to get his secret boyfriend arrested to cover up their relationship, Harris immediately leaves Pembleton to take the fall when it becomes a major news story.
- Corrupt Bureaucrat: He contrasts from Gaffney and Barnfather, who are merely Obstructive Bureaucrats, by being legitimately corrupt and just as much of an obstacle to the protagonists.
- Dirty Cop: He's perfectly happy to cover up Congressman Wade's false kidnapping charges since he's one of the BPD's biggest backers. It's also revealed years prior that he stole drugs from evidence lock-up, a revelation that later destroys his career.
- Evil Counterpart: He's very much what Pembleton could become if he chose to compromise his principles for the sake of advancement.
- Evil Is Petty: He chooses Roger Gaffney, an incompetent racist and colossal jerk, as captain over Al out of sheer petulance, describing it as "Mickey Shea all over again", and refuses to do anything to help Kellerman out of spite.
- Fallen Hero: Giardello and Harris recall that Harris helped Giardello while he was still a rookie by stopping his racist training officer from bullying him, implying Harris was once genuinely concerned with his fellow black officers. By the time of the series, any noble qualities he had are gone, and he's just a vile and corrupt Smug Snake.
- Faux Affably Evil: He can be very charismatic, even after showing his true colors, but it's completely insincere and he often shows what a vile, petulant tyrant he truly is.
- Hate Sink: Where Barnfather and even Gaffney had the occasional Pet the Dog moment, Harris is purely a petty and venal man, designed to show just how corrupt the top brass of the BPD are.
- Hypocrite: He defends himself to Pembleton by claiming that if Harris were involved in a scandal, it would ruin opportunities for other black people. He later promotes the racist Gaffney to Captain just to spite Giardello, showing he's only concerned with himself.
- Jerkass: While the top brass of the BPD are generally unlikeable, Harris is the worst of them all. He's smug, hypocritical, arrogant, and deliberately promotes the racist and incompetent Gaffney just to spite Gee.
- Kick the Dog: He promotes Gaffney over Al just to piss Al off and is later willing to let Kellerman be railroaded just to twist the knife even further.
- Not-So-Well-Intentioned Extremist: After Pembleton calls him out on leaving him to take the fall for covering up Congressman Wade's wrongful charges against his lover, Harris justifies himself by claiming that a scandal involving a powerful black man such as himself would cause a domino effect that would ruin opportunities for African-Americans to get similarly high-ranking and respected positions. Pembleton quickly calls bullshit and points out that he's just rationalizing his desire to keep his position.
- Pet the Dog: Al mentions that, at the start of his career on the force, he was paired with a racist partner named Mickey Shea who wouldn't even let him sit in the front seat of their patrol car and bullied Al constantly in the hopes of provoking him into a fight and getting him kicked off the force. Harris intervened on Al's behalf and Shea never bothered Al again.
- Shadow Archetype: Harris is what Pembleton would be if he abandoned his morals to ride through the ranks. Harris is as intelligent, sophisticated, and arrogant as Frank is, but he's long since abandoned any principles to get ahead.
- Smug Snake: He's quite smug and arrogant, using his power as an excuse to be petty and cruel to his underlings. He falls into this especially when taunting Giardello in "Blood Wedding", making it clear he's only concerned with his own power.
- Took a Level in Jerkass: "Blood Wedding" implies he used to be a genuinely good man before he became the corrupt and venal Smug Snake he is in the series proper.
- Villain with Good Publicity: He's very well regarded as a cop who helped break racial barriers in the police department with even racist white cops respecting him and Frank clearly seeing him as a potential mentor. Only a few get to see what a horrible person he truly is.
- Wicked Cultured: During his lunch with Pembleton, Harris gives off a sophisticated vibe and takes him out to a fancy restarting where he orders linguini pomodoro.
George Barnfather
Captain/Colonel George Barnfather
Portrayed by: Clayton LeBouef
One of Giardello's superiors, who often pressures him whenever any of his detectives' cases threaten to bring the BPD negative publicity.
- Asshole Victim: He's taken hostage by a crazed woman in "In Search of Crimes Past". None of the detectives feel sympathetic towards him, though they still do their best to rescue him by appeasing the kidnapper's demands.
- Bad Boss: He's constantly bullying his subordinates, and the whole asbestos debacle makes it clear he'll put lives on the line for the sake of good P.R.
- Da Chief: He's always on Giardello's case about making the department look good, and will occasionally interfere with the detectives' investigations should he deem it necessary.
- Disproportionate Retribution: He demotes Russert for refusing to cover up a sniper going on a killing spree in Baltimore, which he feels humiliated the department.
- Everyone Has Standards: After Bolander, Howard, and Felton's shooting, Barnfather gives Giardello his full support and his choice of resources to track the shooter down. He's also genuinely unsettled by Harris' behavior in regards to Barundi Robinson, clearly feeling (correctly) that Harris is hiding something bad.
- Evil Is Petty: Well, more Jerkass Is Petty, but after Bayliss angrily calls him a "butthead" after Barnfather jeopardizes the Adena Watson case with his grandstanding, he storms into the squadroom while still in his pajamas and holes himself up in Giardello's office, refusing to leave until Bayliss apologizes.
- Insane Troll Logic: He refuses to add another detective to Giardello's unit even when he's three men downnote because his clearance rate isn't high enough, even though this is the result of his lack of manpower, and Barnfather will only add another officer if he can raise the clearance rate. It's implied that the real reason is because Barnfather wants to spite Giardello. Russert is eventually able to talk him into letting another detective in, so long as he solves an arson case.
- Jerkass: Barnfather is a dick. He's constantly passive-aggressively insulting Giardello and his detectives, frequently goes behind their backs and jeopardizes their cases, and is generally an unpleasant, deeply petty man.
- Jerkass Has a Point: When he berates Pembleton for covering up Congressman Wade's false kidnapping charges, he's completely in the right even if he's just as nasty as he usually is about it. Giardello even acknowledges this, bluntly telling Pembleton he's dug his own grave.
- Kick the Dog:
- He and Granger refuse to allow an honor guard at Crosetti's funeral because they feel that drawing attention to a cop's suicide would be politically inconvenient, and he rudely rubs this in Giardello's face.
- He and Granger force Russert to investigate Giardello's conduct, clearly intending to scapegoat him for Howard, Felton, and Bolander's shooting. It's implied that Granger is the brains behind the operation, and Barnfather is surprisingly polite (for Barnfather) about Giardello and Russert calling him out on it to his face, implying he didn't want to carry out such a directive either.
- Obstructive Bureaucrat: He's constantly interfering in the squad's investigations whenever they threaten the BPD's PR. Later episodes become increasingly sympathetic to his predicaments.
- The Peter Principle: Barnfather climbs the ranks throughout the series, not out of competence, but because his political savvy and ass-kissing skills make him well-suited to the publicity-minded upper ranks of the BPD.
- Pointy-Haired Boss: Barnfather has never actually worked on the streets, and only made it to his position out of political savvy than any real talent. He's more concerned with good publicity than good police work, and he's repeatedly shown to be petty and mercurial in his whims.
- Reasonable Authority Figure: Downplayed. He remains a Pointy-Haired Boss throughout the series, but he becomes more reasonable as the series goes on and willing to listen to Giardello.
- Slave to PR: He's always playing damage control when the BPD's reputation is even mildly threatened.
- Took a Level in Kindness: He never becomes outright kind, but he grows more reasonable and somewhat more sympathetic as the series goes on. He seems to develop a grudging respect of Giardello and more willing to accept his advice, despite the two constantly butting heads.
Burt Granger
Colonel Burt Granger
Portrayed by: Gerald F. Gough
"The Samaritan of the Year Award symbolizes everything that's right about this city. This woman's murder symbolizes everything that's wrong."
One of Giardello's superiors. Like Barnfather, he frequently pressures him whenever Gee's detectives catch a red ballnote , and serves as the face of the BPD to the media.
- Bad Boss: He and Barnfather cover up hazardous asbestos in the police station so they won't have to face any backlash or pay for medical treatment should it cause any officers to fall ill. He's also prone to playing mind games with his subordinates just for fun.
- Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: Granger is polite, but it's clear it's a front. He's just as much of a slimy careerist as Barnfather is, and he's the driving force behind a lot of the shit Gee and his detectives have to deal with from the upper ranks.
- Da Chief: He often joins Barnfather in berating Giardello and trying to force him into helping them stop the department's reputation from being impugned.
- Dirty Cop: It's revealed in "The Old and the Dead" that Granger has been running a scam against the city by pulling strings to have his brother-in-law's plumbing company hired by the city to repair the plumbing system of a building. The plumbers would sabotage the plumbing system, and be called back to repair it. Giardello uncovers it after Granger pulls it off on the precinct, and leaks the story to the press, resulting in Granger being forced to retire.
- Dude, Where's My Respect?: At one point, he whines to Giardello about his office being painted the wrong color in spite of all his years of service and his high position. Giardello subtly points out that he similarly is unappreciated for his own hard work by Granger, which Granger promptly rushes off.
- Jerkass: While he's more openly polite than Barnfather, he's just as slimy and self-serving, with the added bonus of loving to play games with his underlings for fun.
- Kick the Dog:
- He and Barnfather refuse to allow an honor guard at Crosetti's funeral because they feel drawing attention to a cop's suicide would be politically inconvenient.
- He and Barnfather force Russert to revue Giardello's conduct, clearly intending to use this to scapegoat him for Felton, Howard, and Bolander's shooting. It's implied that Granger is the brains behind the operation, and he's pretty cold about forcing Russert into helping pin the blame on her own friend.
- Politically Incorrect Villain: He clearly lacks confidence in Russert's abilities, implicitly because she's a woman.
- Put on a Bus: He's forced to retire after Giardello leaks his corruption to the press.
- The Scrooge: Life would be easier for everyone if Granger weren't such a cheapskate. It's pointed out that he refuses to buy computers for his subordinates even though it would clearly help stop them from being overworked because it would cost too much money for his tastes, and he tries to cover up that the precinct was lined with asbestos to avoid potential lawsuits and so he wouldn't have to provide officers poisoned by it with health benefits.
- Slave to PR: To a possibly greater extent than Barnfather, as Granger serves as the face of the BPD to the media.
Roger Gaffney
Detective/Captain Roger Gaffney
"That's the beauty of power. It's arbitrary."
Portrayed by: Walt MacPherson
An incompetent, racist homicide detective working in Russert's shift who is loathed by the entire squad room. Gaffney is transferred to Missing Persons after failing to properly investigate a crime scene, and manages to sleaze his way into being promoted to Captain.
- Bad Boss: Not a particularly good detective to begin with, and he tends to abuse his power once he's promoted.
- Bigotry Exception: Pretty obviously a racist, and one of his first scenes shows him calling Pembleton "boy." Still, he's loyal to his mostly black bosses.
- Evil Is Petty: It's revealed during Season 5 that, even after being promoted to Captain, he still habitually stole other people's food from the Homicide Unit's refrigerator, becoming known as the notorious "Lunch Bandit".
- Fighting Irish: He's an Irish cop who challenges Pembleton to a fight during an argument, and immediately gets his ass kicked.
- Foil: To Pembleton. They're both arrogant detectives disliked by their peers. However, Pembleton is a deeply competent, fundamentally good black man who is enraged by even the insinuation of racism, while Gaffney is an inept, racist white man who never shows any redeeming qualities. This is best seen in their interactions with the janitor during the murder case where Frank is polite and respectful of the older man and gets crucial information from him, Gaffney is rude and dismissive and nearly bungles the case as a result.
- Hate Sink: There's absolutely nothing good about Gaffney. He's a surly, unpleasant racist and sexist and an embarrassment as a police officer who nearly fucks up a major case due to incompetence and his unpleasant demeanor.
- Jerkass: Gaffney may well be the biggest dick in the entire series. He's sexist, racist, surly, incompetent, a petty ass kisser and bully and just awful to be around.
- Never My Fault: When Russert calls him out for screwing up the investigation into the white gloves murders, Gaffney immediately starts trying to blame her for his own screw-up and goes into a misogynistic rant about how much he hates her essentially for expecting him to do his job.
- Pet the Dog: After being transferred to Missing Persons, Gaffney helps Felton search for his kids and directs him to a private detective when he isn't able to turn anything up. Of course, being Gaffney, he does all of this in the most dickish way possible, but it's the only genuinely altruistic thing he ever does.
- Pointy-Haired Boss: Once he's promoted, he remains as incompetent as ever and relentlessly abuses his authority.
- Police Are Useless: Gaffney is an incompetent moron who ignores crucial evidence at a crime scene because he found the witness who told him about it annoying.
- Politically Incorrect Villain: He's openly racist to Frank, which nearly causes the two to come to blows, and later makes sexist remarks to Russert. He's also ableist; after Pembleton recovers from his stroke, he refers to him as "gimped in the head" and argues he can't properly do his job anymore.
- "The Reason You Suck" Speech: When Russert transfers him, he gives her a misogynistic one accusing her of being a Lazy Bum and The Load. It's pretty transparent he's blaming her for his own behavior and incompetence.
- Smug Snake: Gaffen is perpetually smug without doing anything to warrant it, especially after his promotion.
Chris Thormann
Officer Chris Thormann
Portrayed by: Lee Tergesen
A patrolman and Crosetti's close friend.
- A Day in the Limelight: "Blind Rage" mostly centers around Thormann.
- Break the Cutie: Thormann is a polite, kind man who admires Crosetti and gets along with pretty much the entire squad. Of course, he's shot in the head and blinded, resulting in him spiraling into self-loathing and self-pity over his newfound helplessness.
- The Bus Came Back: While he mostly disappears after being blinded, he comes back for one-off appearances in Season 3 and Season 5.
- Hero-Worshipper: He clearly looks up to Crosetti, and buys all of his ludicrous theories about the Lincoln assassination.
- Mauve Shirt: He's one of the few officers to recur outside of the main cast and even gets his own character arc, where he has to deal with being shot and blinded.
- Nice Guy: Thormann is almost relentlessly polite and kindhearted, and never has a bad word for anyone.
- Put on a Bus: He disappears from the series after being blinded, since he no longer can participate in the field work that made him so prominent throughout Season 1. However, he makes one-off appearances in Season 3 and Season 5.
- Self-Deprecation: Thormann quickly descends into deep self-hatred after being blinded, viewing himself as a burden to his wife and outright telling Crosetti that he wishes he had died on the operating table.
Sally Rogers
Officer Sally Rogers
Portrayed by: Kristin Rohde
A patrolwoman who frequently encounters the homicide detectives.
- The Lad-ette: She's fairly tomboyish in her demeanor.
- Mauve Shirt: She gets a little more characterization than the other patrol officers, but generally only appears to give exposition.
- Mr. Exposition: She appears generally to give the detectives information about the crime scene.
- Nice Girl: Tends to be quite affable and professional.
Jeff Westby
Officer Jeff Westby
Portrayed by: Granville Adams
A patrolman who frequently encounters the detectives.
- Flat Character: He doesn't really have much characterization, and mainly shows up just to give exposition about the latest murder the detectives are investigating.
- Mr. Exposition: He exists mainly to give the detectives exposition about the latest crime scene.
Ann Schanne
Officer Ann Schanne
Portrayed by: Julie Lauren
A rookie patrolwoman.
- Chuck Cunningham Syndrome: She stops appearing following Season 5 with no explanation.
- Naïve Newcomer: She's a fairly obvious newcomer and has no idea what she's doing when she stumbles across a crime scene for the first time. Howard is just barely able to salvage the investigation from Schanne's nervous bungling.
- Put on a Bus: Her absence in Season 3 is explained by her having gone on vacation in Costa Rica.
- Took a Level in Badass: Downplayed. She's a bumbling Naïve Newcomer in the first season, but she's become a reasonably competent officer by the time of Season 4.
Jimmy Tyron
Lieutenant Jimmy Tyron
Portrayed by: Michael S. Kennedy
A police lieutenant who had an affair with Howard.
- Broken Pedestal: Howard initially remembers their affair as short, but passionate, and thinks Tyron had been tormented by the conflict between his love for her and his marriage, which was why he broke it off. When he's involved in a police shooting, Howard realizes that he only really did it for the thrill of it and likely never cared about Howard at all.
- Dirty Cop: He shot Charles Courtland Cox in cold blood when he ran away from Tyron after he threatened him at gunpoint, then covered it up and talked Hellriegel into shouldering the blame.
- Even Evil Has Loved Ones: He genuinely loves his children, and begs Pembleton and Bayliss not to arrest him in front of them.
- Obviously Evil: It's blatantly obvious he shot Cox and he's suspicious as hell, but everyone except Pembleton is either in denial or content to sweep it under the rug due to the blue wall of silence.
- Police Brutality: During a crackhouse raid, he threatened drug dealers Charles Courtland Cox and Lane Staley at gunpoint and roughed them up after they had already been detained. When Cox (who was unarmed) smacked the gun out of Tyron's hands and made a break for it, Tyron shot him in the back.
- Put on a Prison Bus: He's last seen being arrested by Pembleton and Bayliss after they find the gun he used to shoot Cox.
- Whatever Happened to the Mouse?: It's left ambiguous whether or not he's convicted for killing Cox. Either way, he's never seen again after being arrested.
Fred Hellriegel
Officer Fred Hellriegel
Portrayed by: Jeffrey Mandon
A patrolman implicated in a police shooting.
- Accidental Murder: Subverted. He claims to have accidentally shot Charles Courtland Cox when he tripped while pursuing him, but Pembleton quickly ferrets out that he's lying to cover someone else.
- Bad Liar: He's unable to keep his story straight and Pembleton is very easily able to poke holes in his claims of having accidentally shot Cox; it takes him all of thirty seconds to figure out Hellriegel is trying to cover something up.
- The Bus Came Back: After disappearing once the police shooting arc was resolved, he returns five seasons later in "Shades of Gray".
- Dirty Cop: He lies about Cox's shooting to cover up that Tyron murdered Cox in cold blood. When he returns in Season 7, he kills a drug dealer, using a nearby riot as a cover.
- Early-Bird Cameo: He makes a brief appearance during "Gone for Goode" as a trainee, before coming back as a major character in Season 2.
- Morality Adjustment: In Season 2, he's covering up for Jimmy Tyron, but he's no different than most officers and even some of the main characters engage in the blue wall of silence
. When he returns in Season 7, he's a murderous Dirty Cop. - Put on a Prison Bus: He's arrested for murdering a drug dealer.
Willard Higby
Detective Willard Higby
Portrayed by: Beau James
A detective working under Russert.
- Lazy Bum: He falsely reports a prostitute's murder as an overdose simply to lighten his workload, and because he viewed her profession as disgusting.
- Mauve Shirt: He generally shows up whenever a cop from Russert's shift needs to show up.
- Straw Misogynist: He holds deeply sexist views. He argues that Russert only got to her position by sleeping her way to the top, and throws a temper tantrum about Howard showing him up when she offered to help him with his malfunctioning typewriter.
- Ungrateful Bastard: When Howard offers to help him with a malfunctioning typewriter, he immediately throws a temper tantrum about her "showing him up" in front of his colleagues.
Russ DeSilva
Detective Russ DeSilva
Portrayed by: Steven Marcus
A narcotics officer with a rivalry with Munch,
- Chuck Cunningham Syndrome: He vanishes from the series after being a recurring character throughout Season 1.
- Sitcom Archnemesis: To Munch. They hold incompatible political views about the War on Drugs and despise each other in general, and thus bicker constantly.
Emma Zoole
Emma Zoole
Portrayed by: Lauren Tom
A beautiful police sketch artist.
- Berserk Button: She hates it when people try and fight her battles for her, viewing it as ignoring her own wants and needs. She breaks up with Bayliss for it, when he threatens her ex-boyfriend for hitting her.
- Huge Guy, Tiny Girl: She's the "tiny girl" to both Tim and Meldrick, both of whom tower over her.
- Nice Girl: She's a sweet, perky woman who's easy to get along with. It's hard not to see what Bayliss and Lewis see in her.
- Nightmare Fetishist: She loves death, viewing celebrating it as the ultimate way to laugh in its face. She frequently attends an art exhibition filled with art by serial killers and she sleeps in a coffin.
- Perky Goth: She has creepy tastes, but she's an absolute sweetheart.
Mitch Drummond
Detective Mitch Drummond
Portrayed by: Tony Lo Bianco
Bolander's former partner, who transferred to Bomb Squad eight years prior to the series. Bolander still thinks highly of him, and frequently negatively compares Munch to him.
- The Ace: Mitch is an unbelievably competent detective, which is only aided by his vast knowledge of forensic science.
- Always Someone Better: To Munch. Bolander frequently claims he was better than Munch in every way and often negatively compares them. When Mitch shows up, he proves to be every bit as competent as Bolander said, but he commiserates with Munch at one point about how hard Bolander was on both of them.
- Cool Old Guy: He's old enough to have grandchildren and he's just as skilled at his job as ever, effortlessly taking up homicide work again even after eight years.
- Foil: To Stan. Both are extremely competent detectives but while Stan is a grump with a failed marriage who can't find it in him to quit Homicide work as he has nothing in his life, Mitch is a laid-back and friendly guy who is married with grandkids and had no issue leaving the Homicide unit.
- The Ghost: For the first two seasons. He shows up in person in Season 3.
- It's Personal: After Bolander is shot, Mitch demands that Giardello let him participate in the investigation to catch the shooter on the grounds Bolander would have done the same for him.
- Never-Forgotten Skill: He's been away from active homicide work for eight years but picks it up again instantly, even assuaging fears he'd be a liability by bringing up a saxophone he used to play every night and now only does so rarely but can return to it like he never stopped.
- Nice Guy: He's a friendly, likable person who gets along well with others, with even Munch finding it hard to hate him after years of Stan's negative comparisons. He even eases up on describing a vacation he took with Stan to Mexico when he sees it's upsetting John to hear about a friendship with Stan he never had, saying the two had a bad time anyway and noting that he knows as well as John how hard it can be working with Stan.
- Vitriolic Best Buds: He describes his relationship with Stan in this way, noting that they could be best friends one moment and absolutely hate one another the next.
Theresa Walker
Detective Theresa Walker
Portrayed by: Gloria Reuben
A detective from Sex Crimes assigned to assist into the investigation into Bolander, Felton, and Howard's shooting.
- Badass Boast: When Pembleton is skeptical of her assistance and demands she debrief him about Glenn Holton, she boasts that she knows everything there is to know about him and that doing so would be wasting time when she could be tracking him down in the field.
- Drives Like Crazy: She's always calm and professional but not behind the wheel of a car. Poor Lewis looks like he's praying to every deity he can think of for safety when travelling with her.
Jasper
Lieutenant Jasper
Portrayed by: Gary D'Addario
The commander of a QRT unit.
- Da Chief: Of QRT. He's also played a former real-life example with Gary "Dee" D'Addario being the real-life inspiration for Al Giardello, even down to the nickname.
- Dude, Where's My Respect?: He gets very pissed at how Pembleton refuses to listen to his advice and overrides his plans in spite of how experienced Jasper is.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: He's surly and confrontational which leads to him constantly arguing with the main characters, but genuinely dedicated to saving lives.
- Jerkass Has a Point: While he doesn't exactly phrase it nicely, he's right that Pembleton's insistence on controlling the investigation and overriding Jasper's plan for the raid on Holton's hideout led to Holton getting away.
- Manly Facial Hair: He sports a cool-looking mustache, and he's the head of a QRT unit, a tactical unit designed to deal with threats such as hostage situations and terrorist threats. Jasper is also rather tough in general, and refuses to take shit from anyone, not even Pembleton.
Douglas Jones
Detective Douglas Jones
Portrayed by: Robert Clohessy
Russert's former partner, who transfer to Homicide after working in Narcotics for the years.
- Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: He seems a fairly charming guy but is really a vicious wife beater.
- Broken Pedestal: Russert is horrified and disgusted to learn that he abuses his wife. She outright tells him he's no better than the countless domestic abusers they've arrested over the years.
- Domestic Abuse: It's revealed that he's physically and emotionally abusive to his wife.
- Never My Fault: He continuously makes excuses for beating his wife, which Russert calls him out on.
- Uncertain Doom: His wife shoots him in the chest twice in self-defense. He's last seen being take into an ambulance, injured and barely clinging to life. It's implied he dies of his wounds, but it's never directly stated.
Jake Rodzinki
Detective Jake Rodzinki
Portrayed by: Bruce Campbell
A detective and a close friend of Lewis.
- Anti-Villain: He ultimately snaps and murders Kenny Damon, but only because he got away with murdering his father. He's ultimately a tragic figure, being arrested when his partner betrays him.
- Bad People Abuse Animals: One of the biggest signs of his Sanity Slippage is when he murders his father's dog to put him out of his misery, believing the dog wants to join his father in the afterlife.
- Dirty Cop: A sympathetic example. Jake murdered Kenny Damon in cold blood, but only because he had gotten off scot-free for killing his father.
- Evil Former Friend: To Lewis, although Jake isn't evil, just desperate and pitiable.
- Fallen Hero: He's a detective just like the main characters are and is implied to have had the same kind of adventures as them. He's driven to kill his father's murderer after the man is declared innocent simply because the jury wanted to go home.
- Hero of Another Story: He's a detective introduced having a Seinfeldian Conversation with his partner Pez much like the main characters do, setting him up as being just as heroic as the main characters. It makes his fall from grace all the more tragic.
- Sanity Slippage: He becomes increasingly erratic after his father is murdered, and only gets worse after he kills Kenny Damon.
- Tragic Villain: He's a good man who killed his father's murderer because the man was let Off on a Technicality. Lewis and the other main characters have nothing but pity for Jake.
Pez McCadden
Detective Pez McCadden
Portrayed by: John Haynes Walker
Jake's partner.
- Affably Evil: He's much more unsympathetic than Jake, but he's still quite friendly and amicable.
- Deadpan Snarker: He's quite prone to dry, sarcastic remarks.
- Dirty Coward: Once Kellerman provides what seems like concrete evidence against him, Pez immediately confesses for the sake of a plea deal and leaves Jake out to take a harsh sentence. Kellerman calls him out on it.
- Dirty Cop: He helped Jake murder Kenny Damon.
Bob Connolly
Detective Bob Connolly
Portrayed by: Cleo Reginald Pizana
A detective working in Arson.
- Dirty Cop: Alongside everyone in Arson besides Kellerman, Connolly took bribes from Mitch Roland.
- Dirty Coward: He's the most terrified of the corruption probe and later proves more than willing to sell out the innocent Kellerman to protect himself.
- Jerkass: He's quite confrontational and aggressive with everyone.
- Smug Snake: He's always unduly smug. He's positively gleeful about telling Giardello he's going to testify against Kellerman and that Gee can't stop him.
Judges, Lawyers, and Attorneys
Ed Danvers
Assistant State's Attorney Ed Danvers
"The thing about being public advocate is sometimes you gotta play devil's advocate."
Portrayed by: Željko Ivanek
An ambitious Assistant State's Attorney. He is a fundamentally good man, but is extremely overworked and quick to succumb to the pressures of his job.
- Amicable Exes: He and Howard get along well even after they break up.
- Arch-Enemy: Julius Cummings, the robber who murdered his fiancé.
- Be Careful What You Wish For: He wants Cummings dead for killing his fiancé, and even threatens him personally. However, Ed is horrified when he learns Cummings was so intimidated he hung himself in his cell.
- Heroic BSoD: He's sent into a breakdown after his fiancé is shot in front of him. The usually mellow Danvers becomes increasingly emotional and volatile, before eventually breaking down into tears when Howard comforts him.
- My God, What Have I Done?: After his wife is killed and Maggie refuses to prosecute the killer because there isn't enough evidence, Danvers is horrified when he realizes he's done the same to so many victims' families.
- O.O.C. Is Serious Business: It's a sign of how much his fiancé's murder has affected him that Ed - previously against the death penalty - admits he wants her killer dead.
- Jerkass: He starts out as being a rather slimy careerist. He very quickly mellows out after he realizes what an ass he's been, and buys Howard beer to make up for it.
- Nice Guy: After having a Jerkass Realization, he becomes much more friendly and amiable.
- Revenge Before Reason: He demands Cummings be killed and wants him to face the death penalty. When he realizes Cummings will be let off, he threatens to use his knowledge of the law to kill him somehow. Cummings is so intimidated he commits suicide, much to Ed's horror.
- Ship Tease: With Howard. They eventually get together, though they call it off after a while.
- Vengeance Feels Empty: For all that he wanted Cummings dead, the man's suicide doesn't make him feel any better.
Maggie Conroy
Assistant State's Attorney Maggie Conroy
Portrayed by: Helen Carey
An Assistant State's Attorney. In contrast to Danvers, she is fairly focused on giving the city government good PR, and often allies with Barnfather and Granger in matters concerning accusations of corruption and police brutality. However, she's shown to be a mostly honest attorney and fairly good at her job.
- Amoral Attorney: Subverted. She's fairly unpleasant and prone to allying with Granger and Barnfather, but she's shown to be rather honest for the most part.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: She's smug, and rather blunt and cold, but she still comforts Danvers after his fiancé is killed.
- Knight Templar: She shows shades of this. In "Prison Riot", she intends to give Elijah Sanborn's 14-year-old son (who had committed robbery) a harsh prison sentence, and initially refuses to offer him a lighter sentence because she believes he's too much of a hardened criminal.
- Smug Snake: Though not particularly villainous, she gives off this vibe, not helped by being a rather cold person in general.
Gail Ingram
Gail Ingram
Portrayed by: Rebecca Boyd
A US State's Attorney investigating Kellerman for corruption.
- Hero Antagonist: She's investigating Kellerman for corruption, but she's not evil or even unlikable, just trying to see justice done.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: She's a smug and stern careerist, but she's genuinely compassionate. It's implied she suspects Kellerman is innocent and tries to look out for him, and curb his self-destructive behavior.
Darrin Russom
Defense Attorney Darrin Russom
Portrayed by: Michael Willis
A defense attorney who frequently defends criminals.
- Amoral Attorney: He defends the majority of the series's suspects.
- Chewbacca Defense: He generally tends to rely on ad hominem arguments, attacking witnesses's credibility and using Insane Troll Logic to support this.
- Everyone Has Standards: He's noticeably horrified when Pembleton has a stroke in front of him.
- Fat Bastard: He's noticeably obese, and he's a smug, amoral bastard.
- Jerkass: He's smug and confrontational in the courtroom.
- Jerkass Has a Point: As Pembleton eventually acknowledges, Russom was absolutely right that he abused his authority while interrogating Annabella Wilgis. Even though she was guilty, she was clearly mentally ill and Pembleton did exploit her DID during the interrogation.
- Pet the Dog: When Pembleton suffers a stroke, it's Russom who alerts the rest of the unit to it.
- Smug Snake: He's unjustifiably smug in his abilities, but clearly not that competent of an attorney.
- Villainy-Free Villain: Russom is certainly a jerk, but his job is to defend his clients to the best of his ability and he never does anything outright illegal.
Susan Andahl
Judge Susan Andahl
Portrayed by: Sagan Lewis
A politically-minded judge.
- A Day in the Limelight: She gets quite a bit of focus in "The True Test", which centers on her relationship with her murderous son.
- Even Evil Can Be Loved: She deeply loves her son McPhee despite acknowledging how dangerous he is, and does everything she can to protect him from legal consequences. Even when he admits he wanted to kill her, Amdahl still tries to protect him.
- Friendly Enemy: When Bayliss suspects her son of murder in "The True Test", she makes it clear to him that while she opposes him, she still likes him and thinks he's a good detective.
- Mama Bear: She does her best to protect McPhee from prosecution, even after he confesses that he planned to murder her. Bayliss sympathizes, admitting he can't help but admire her love for her child.
- Nothing Personal: She admits she doesn't have anything against Bayliss for going after McPhee and that she knows he's dangerous, but he's still her son and she refuses to let him go to prison.
- Obstructive Bureaucrat: In "Autofocus", she refuses to give Kellerman and Lewis an arrest warrant for a murder investigation that has literal video evidence implicating the killer on the grounds that Lewis is untrustworthy. Kellerman is able to talk her into giving them the warrant, though she makes sure to warn them not to screw up.
- Screw the Rules, I Have Connections!: She uses her connections to stop McPhee from being prosecuted, and continues to try to protect him even after it becomes apparent he's an utter monster.
Medical and Forensic Experts
Carol Blythe
Medical Examiner Carol Blythe
Portrayed by: Wendy Hughes
A medical examiner and Australian immigrant who slowly begins a relationship with Bolander.
- The Alcoholic: Downplayed, but she has a self-professed love for wine.
- Deadpan Snarker: Just because she loves Bolander doesn't mean she's afraid to snark at him.
- Put on a Bus: She disappears after breaking up with Bolander
- Satellite Love Interest: She only really appears in relation to Bolander, and disappears from the series once her relationship with him is over.
Dr. Scheiner
Medical Examiner Scheiner
Portrayed by: Ralph Tabakin
A medical examiner.
- The Bore: Howard describes him as "the least dynamic coroner in all of Baltimore".
- Bunny-Ears Lawyer: He's grumpy and eccentric, but he's competent at his job.
- Characterization Marches On: He started off as The Bore, before evolving into his more familiar characterization as an eccentric Grumpy Old Man.
- Cloudcuckoolander: Scheiner is a very offbeat guy who barely comprehends social skills. During Christmas, Scheiner places signs promoting Christmas, Kwanzaa, and Chanukah to accommodate each of his "guests"'s religions. Keep in mind that said guests are corpses.
- Creepy Mortician: Downplayed, since he's mostly just weird than creepy, but he has his moments of this. A notable example is when Bolander returns to work after being shot, Scheiner greets him by saying he expected to see his body in the morgue at some point.
- Everyone Has Standards: He's absolutely disgusted by Pony Johnson's callousness.
- Flat Character: He doesn't have much characterization outside of showing up whenever the plot requires an M.E. for the first two seasons. He gets more characterization starting in Season 3.
- Grumpy Old Man: He's an old, comically grouchy man who's prone to bickering and being blunt about his opinions of things.
- Honorary True Companion: He never joins the main cast and he's not part of the unit, but he's on good terms with the detectives to the point of attending Lewis's wedding.
- No Social Skills: Scheiner barely seems to grasp basic concepts like being polite or political correctness, but still valiantly attempts them in the creepiest ways possible.
- Plucky Comic Relief: He mostly serves as comic relief, often making jokes and providing levity in even the darkest of episodes.
Alyssa Dyer
Medical Examiner Alyssa Dyer
Portrayed by: Harlee McBride
A medical examiner.
- Beware the Nice Ones: When Munch confesses that he slept with her roommate, she responds by punching him in the face.
- Deadpan Snarker: She has a dry wit and occasionally snarks at the detectives.
- Meaningful Name: A medical examiner named Dyer.
Lausanne
Medical Examiner Lausanne
Portrayed by: Herb Levinson
A medical examiner.
- Flat Character: He doesn't have much of a role outside of being the M.E. who isn't Scheiner or Dyer, and has no real personality to speak of.
Griscom
Medical Examiner George Griscom
Portrayed by: Austin Pendleton
Another medical examiner.
- Mood Dissonance: In contrast to the grumpy Scheiner and the cynicism of most of the other MEs, he is a cheerful, voluble guy who regularly goes on conversational tangents, and sometimes approaches an Excited Kids' Show Host persona when explaining a scientific point to the detectives.
- Remember the New Guy?: He only appears in the seventh season (in which he is the most frequently depicted ME). However, he isn't introduced as a new character, and in "Truth Will Out" he talks about a former, now retired, ME's incompetence and alcoholism as if he was there at the time of the scandal.
