List of characters from The Wire

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The following is a listing of fictional characters from the HBO series, The Wire. Note that some characters' allegiances or position have changed over time; the placement below is generally meant to reflect their current or most recent situation.

Contents 1 Current cast 2 Formerly starring 3 The Law 3.1 Police 3.1.1 Command 3.1.1.1 Ervin Burrell 3.1.1.2 Cedric Daniels 3.1.1.3 Raymond Foerster 3.1.1.4 Dennis Mello 3.1.1.5 William Rawls 3.1.1.6 Bobby Reed 3.1.1.7 Marvin Taylor 3.1.1.8 Stanislaus Valchek 3.1.2 Major Case Unit 3.1.2.1 Kenneth Dozerman 3.1.2.2 Thomas "Herc" Hauk 3.1.2.3 Charlie Marimow 3.1.2.4 Caroline Massey 3.1.2.5 Leander Sydnor 3.1.3 Homicide 3.1.3.1 Ray Cole 3.1.3.2 Lester Freamon 3.1.3.3 Kima Greggs 3.1.3.4 Vernon Holley 3.1.3.5 Jay Landsman 3.1.3.6 Bunk Moreland 3.1.3.7 Ed Norris 3.1.4 Western District 3.1.4.1 Ellis Carver 3.1.4.2 Anthony Colicchio 3.1.4.3 Lloyd "Truck" Garrick 3.1.4.4 Jimmy McNulty 3.1.4.5 Michael Santangelo 3.1.4.6 Eddie Walker 3.1.5 Others 3.1.5.1 Claude Diggins 3.1.5.2 Randall Frazier 3.1.5.3 Patrick Mahone 3.1.5.4 Augustus Polk 3.1.5.5 Beadie Russell 3.2 FBI 3.2.1 Terrence "Fitz" Fitzhugh 3.2.2 Amanda Reese 3.3 Court house 3.3.1 Steven Demper 3.3.2 Ilene Nathan 3.3.3 Rhonda Pearlman 3.3.4 Daniel Phelan 3.4 Politics 3.4.1 Jen Carcetti 3.4.2 Tommy Carcetti 3.4.3 Theresa D'Agostino 3.4.4 Marla Daniels 3.4.5 Clayton "Clay" Davis 3.4.6 Gerry 3.4.7 Anthony Gray 3.4.8 Andy Krawczyk 3.4.9 Coleman Parker 3.4.10 Clarence Royce 3.4.11 Odell Watkins 3.4.12 Norman Wilson 3.5 Prison staff 3.5.1 Dwight Tilghman 3.6 Police relatives 3.6.1 Cheryl 3.6.2 Elena McNulty 3.6.3 Sean McNulty 3.6.4 Michael McNulty 4 The Street 4.1 Barksdale Crew 4.1.1 Leadership 4.1.1.1 Avon Barksdale 4.1.1.2 D'Angelo Barksdale 4.1.1.3 Stringer Bell 4.1.1.4 Maurice Levy 4.1.2 Front workers 4.1.2.1 Wendell "Orlando" Blocker 4.1.2.2 Shardene Innes 4.1.3 Soldiers 4.1.3.1 Anton "Stinkum" Artis 4.1.3.2 Bernard 4.1.3.3 Wee-Bey Brice 4.1.3.4 Country 4.1.3.5 Gerard 4.1.3.6 Marquis "Bird" Hilton 4.1.3.7 Little Man 4.1.3.8 Perry 4.1.3.9 Rico 4.1.3.10 Sapper 4.1.3.11 Savino 4.1.3.12 Tank 4.1.4 Drug dealers 4.1.4.1 Bodie Broadus 4.1.4.2 Poot Carr 4.1.4.3 Shaun "Shamrock" McGinty 4.1.4.4 Puddin 4.1.4.5 Ronnie Mo 4.1.4.6 Sterling 4.1.4.7 Wallace 4.1.5 Family 4.1.5.1 Donette 4.1.5.2 Brianna Barksdale 4.1.5.3 De'Londa Brice 4.2 Omar's Crew 4.2.1 Omar Little 4.2.2 Brandon 4.2.3 Bailey 4.2.4 Dante 4.2.5 Kimmy 4.2.6 Tosha Mitchell 4.2.7 Butchie 4.3 Stanfield Organization 4.3.1 Marlo "Black" Stanfield 4.3.2 Fruit 4.3.3 Justin 4.3.4 Jamal 4.3.5 Old Face Andre 4.3.6 Chris Partlow 4.3.7 Felicia "Snoop" Pearson 4.3.8 "Monk" Metcalf 4.3.9 Vinson 4.4 New Day Co-Op 4.4.1 Proposition Joe 4.4.2 Slim Charles 4.4.3 Melvin "Cheese" Wagstaff 4.5 East Side 4.5.1 Frog 4.5.2 "White" Mike McArdle 4.6 Others 4.6.1 Bubbles 4.6.2 Brother Mouzone 4.6.3 The Deacon 4.6.4 Kenard 4.6.5 Lamar 4.6.6 Squeak 4.6.7 Sherrod 4.6.8 Walon 4.6.9 Johnny Weeks 5 School system 5.1 Namond Brice 5.2 Howard "Bunny" Colvin 5.3 Zenobia Dawson 5.4 Marcia Donnelly 5.5 Donut 5.6 Crystal Judkins 5.7 Michael Lee 5.8 David Parenti 5.9 Roland "Prez" Pryzbylewski 5.10 Grace Sampson 5.11 Albert Stokes 5.12 Darnell Tyson 5.13 Randy Wagstaff 5.14 Duquan "Dukie" Weems 5.15 Karim Williams 5.16 Dennis "Cutty" Wise 5.17 Claudell Withers 6 The Docks 6.1 Sobotka family 6.1.1 Frank Sobotka 6.1.2 Joan Sobotka 6.1.3 Louis Sobotka 6.1.4 Nick Sobotka 6.1.5 Ziggy Sobotka 6.2 Dock workers 6.2.1 Big Roy 6.2.2 Chess 6.2.3 Nat Coxson 6.2.4 La La 6.2.5 Little Big Roy 6.2.6 Maui 6.2.7 Vernon "Ott" Motley 6.2.8 Thomas "Horseface" Pakusa 6.2.9 Johnny "Fifty" Spamanto 6.3 The Greeks 6.3.1 Eton Ben-Eleazer 6.3.2 George "Double G" Glekas 6.3.3 Koutris 6.3.4 Sergei "Serge" Malatov 6.3.5 Spiros Vondas 6.3.6 The Greek 6.4 Others 6.4.1 Aimee 6.4.2 Delores 6.4.3 Bruce DiBiago 7 References

[edit] Current cast

Actor/Actress	Character	Position
Dominic West	Jimmy McNulty	Detective
John Doman	William Rawls	Deputy Police Commissioner of Operations (formerly Major/Colonel)
Frankie R. Faison	Ervin Burrell	Police Commissioner (formerly Deputy Ops)
Aidan Gillen	Tommy Carcetti	Mayor of Baltimore
Seth Gilliam	Ellis Carver	DEU Sergeant (formerly detective)
Domenick Lombardozzi	Thomas "Herc" Hauk	Major Case Unit Sergeant (formerly detective)
Deirdre Lovejoy	Rhonda Pearlman	Chief State's Attorney in charge of Violent Crimes
Clarke Peters	Lester Freamon	Major Case Unit Detective
Wendell Pierce	Bunk Moreland	Homicide Detective
Lance Reddick	Cedric Daniels	Criminal Investigations Commander (Colonel)
Andre Royo	Bubbles	Confidential Informant/Street Goods Store Operator
Sonja Sohn	Kima Greggs	Major Case Unit Detective
Jim True-Frost	Roland "Prez" Pryzbylewski	Teacher (formerly officer)
Glynn Turman	Clarence Royce	Former Mayor of Baltimore
Robert Wisdom	Howard "Bunny" Colvin	Teacher(Former Police Commander)
Reg E. Cathey	Norman Wilson	City Hall Chief of Staff
Chad L. Coleman	Dennis "Cutty" Wise	Youth Boxing Instructor (Former Gang Enforcer)
Jamie Hector	Marlo Stanfield	Drug Kingpin
J. D. Williams	Bodie Broadus	Crew Chief (formerly Drug Dealer)
Michael K. Williams	Omar Little	Stick-up man
Corey Parker Robinson	Leander Sydnor	Major Case Unit Detective
Paul Ben-Victor	Spiros Vondas	Organized Crime Underboss
Amy Ryan	Beadie Russell	Officer (now recurring)

[edit] Formerly starring

Actor/Actress	Character	Position
Idris Elba	Stringer Bell	Drug kingpin
Wood Harris	Avon Barksdale	Drug lord
Larry Gilliard Jr.	D'Angelo Barksdale	Crew chief
Chris Bauer	Frank Sobotka	Union treasurer-secretary

[edit] The Law

[edit] Police

[edit] Command

[edit] Ervin Burrell

Main article: Ervin Burrell

Burrell is a careerist officer who has reached the level of commissioner of police for Baltimore.

[edit] Cedric Daniels

Main article: Cedric Daniels

Daniels is a Major and district commander in the Baltimore Police Department and direct commanding officer of many of the shows characters.

[edit] Raymond Foerster

• Played by: Richard DeAngelis
• Appears in:

Season 1: "The Target"; "The Detail"; "The Buys"; "The Wire"; "The Cost"; "The Hunt" and "Sentencing".

Season 3: "Time After Time "; " All Due Respect "; "Dead Soldiers"; "Straight and True"; "Homecoming"; "Slapstick" and "Mission Accomplished".

Season 4: "Refugees"

Raymond Foerster was a Major and unit commander of the Baltimore narcotics division in season 1. When Judge Phelan questioned Deputy Commissioner Burrell about the Barksdale operation, it was Majors Foerster and Rawls who faced his subsequent wrath and demands for more information. Foerster's response was to ask his shift lieutenant Cedric Daniels for a report and he then assigned Daniels and his team to the Barksdale detail.

When Daniels' investigation became drawn out and relied upon wiretaps and surveillance, Foerster took the side of Deputy Commissioner Burrell against Daniels when he tried to explain the necessity of this technique to reach the heads of the organization. Foerster's and Burrell's insistence on using buy busts led to the operation that resulted with the shooting of Detective Greggs. Foerster visited Greggs in the hospital with many other command officers and appeared anxious when trying to find a tape recorder to replay the last transmissions before she was shot.

Foerster was promoted to colonel and took over as commander of the criminal investigations division when Rawls was promoted. He attended Rawls' weekly comstat meetings and worked with Sergeant Jay Landsman in running the homicide division. He was put under intense pressure to keep the murder rate down.^[1]

In season 4 Foerster continued to command CID. He was involved with the management of the murder of a states witness that became a politically important case. Burrell ordered Foerster to replace veteran investigator Ed Norris with Kima Greggs, now a rookie homicide detective. Foerster realized Burrell hoped to slow the investigation to prevent revealing that the motive for the killing was the victim's witness status. Foerster argues with Burrell and Rawls about the decision and discussed it with Landsman. The decision was leaked to the press by Major Valchek, and Foerster was allowed to put Norris back on the case to save face for the department. Foerster suffered from cancer during this time and was often absent from work. Repeated course of chemotherapy failed to cure the disease. Jay Landsman announced the Colonel's death to the homicide unit, and a police wake was held at an Irish bar in his honor.

Actor Richard DeAngelis died of cancer after filming scenes for the fourth season.^[2]

[edit] Dennis Mello

• Played by: Jay Landsman
• Appears in:

Season 2: "Stray Rounds" (uncredited).

Season 3: "Time After Time"; "All Due Respect"; "Dead Soldiers"; "Amsterdam"; "Straight and True"; "Homecoming"; "Back Burners"; "Reformation"; "Middle Ground" and "Mission Accomplished".

Season 4: "Boys of Summer", "Margin of Error".

Mello was Western District administrative lieutenant and Major "Bunny" Colvin's second in command and confidante before Colvin's forced retirement. Mello ran briefings for the Western district and maintained a sense of humour, typically dismissing the men with "don't get captured." He accompanied Colvin to comstat meetings. Mello was aware of Colvin's "Hamsterdam" free zone where he allowed drug dealing to go unpunished. Mello was worried, but did not report Colvin's actions to his superiors. Colvin protected Mello following the discovery of Hamsterdam by their superiors and after Colvin's departure, Mello was temporarily promoted to Western District Commander. The two remained friends.

In season four Mello returned to his post of administrative lieutenant as Major Daniels was granted the district commander post. Mello worked closely with Daniels and the two tried to convince Officer McNulty to take a position in their operations unit. Both rated his capabilities highly but could not convince him to leave his position in patrol. Mello continues to give charismatic roll call briefings including readying his men for polling station duty and introducing the murder warrant for Omar Little.^[1][3]

Incidentally, the actor who plays Dennis Mello is a retired Baltimore detective named Jay Landsman, and was the real-life basis for the character of the same name in the show.

[edit] William Rawls

Main article: William Rawls

Rawls is the deputy commissioner of operations for the Baltimore police department and a feared and ruthless officer.

[edit] Bobby Reed

• Played by: Tony A. Head
• Appears in:

Season 1: "The Buys"; "Lessons" (uncredited); "The Hunt" and "Cleaning Up".

Season 3: "Time After Time"; "Dead Soldiers"; "Reformation"; "Middle Ground" and "Mission Accomplished".

Reed is a Major in the Baltimore Police Department and runs the Internal Investigations Division. Reed was responsible for investigating the brutality charges made against Roland "Prez" Pryzbylewski.^[4] He also intervened when the Barksdale detail stopped Senator Clay Davis' driver after they spotted him receiving a bag full of cash from a Barksdale soldier^[5] and again when Daniels tried to withhold the location of a Barksdale stash house to protect his investigative work.^[6] Reed later attends Ervin Burrell and William Rawls' weekly comstat meetings.^[7]

[edit] Marvin Taylor

• Played by: Barnett Lloyd
• Appears in season 3: "Time After Time" and "Dead Soldiers".

Taylor was a Major in the Baltimore Police Department and Eastern district commander. He attends Commissioner Burrell and Deputy Rawls' weekly comstat meetings and often struggles with Rawls berating him for better results, particularly when Calvin "Cheese" Wagstaff initiates a spate of murders in the Eastern district. Cedric Daniels unit are able to solve the cases and give Taylor some slight relief. Despite this Burrell eventually relieves Taylor and replaces him with his Deputy Major.^[8]

[edit] Stanislaus Valchek

• Played by: Al Brown
• Appears in:

Season 1: "The Buys".

Season 2: "Ebb Tide"; "Collateral Damage"; "Hot Shots"; "Undertow"; "Stray Rounds"; "Storm Warnings"; "Bad Dreams" and "Port in a Storm".

Season 3: "Time After Time"; "All Due Respect"; "Dead Soldiers" and "Slapstick".

Season 4: "Soft Eyes"; "Alliances".

Major Valchek is Detective "Prez" Pryzbylewski's father-in-law and commander of the South Eastern district. He appeared only briefly in season one, trying to smooth over Prez's drunken blinding of a fourteen-year-old. It was mentioned that Valchek had interceded on Prez's behalf in the past when he fired at his own patrol car.

Valchek was the impetus behind the Sobotka investigation in season two. He also met with Prez to discuss his career progression at the beginning of the season. Valchek was involved in a feud with Frank Sobotka over a pair of stained glass windows the two men had donated to a local church. When Sobotka refused to withdraw his window (which was larger and more ornate than Valchek's), Valchek ordered his subordinates to begin harassing Sobotka and his union, putting parking tickets on their cars and pulling them over for breathalyzer tests. Valchek was the commander of Ellis Carver in his first sergeant post and Carver disliked Valchek for using him in his feud with Sobotka.

The union responded by stealing Valchek's valuable district surveillance van and shipping it from port to port, sending him photographs from each destination. Prompted by this further embarrassment Valchek grew curious as to how Sobotka's destitute union could afford the expensive window. He discussed the union with a politically connected friend, Andy Krawczyk. Krawczyk told Valchek about Sobotka hiring a lobbyist and making campaign contributions. Valchek smelled the possibility of illegal activity and asked then Deputy Commissioner Burrell for a special unit devoted to investigating Sobotka, with Prez as the lead investigator. Since Valchek was well-connected with City Hall through the first district democrats, Burrell obliged.

When Prez informed Valchek that the unit was not doing its job, he demanded a more serious group from Burrell and requested Cedric Daniels as commander on Prez's recommendation, threatening to derail Burrel's quest to become Commissioner if he did not agree. Burrell obligingly recreated Daniels' task force.

As the investigation progressed, Sobotka ceased to be the primary target, and Valchek grew furious. He confronted Daniels' team publicly, and in the process, was punched by his son-in-law. Furious he disowned Prez and threatened to have him removed from the department, telling Daniels that he told his daughter, Joan, not to marry Prez. However, Daniels convinced Valchek to accept a suspension and a letter of apology to all those present at the time of the incident for Prez to keep his post.

Valchek then involved the FBI in the Sobotka investigation to try to refocus it on Frank Sobotka and the union. This prompted a series of raids resulting including Sobotka's arrest. Valchek delighted in personally making the arrest and held Sobotka in the union offices until a press gaggle had assembled outside so that he could publicly humiliate him.^[9]

In season three Valchek attended Burrel's comstat meetings and set up a meeting between the now acting commissioner and Councilman Tommy Carcetti at Carcetti's request. When Prez shot a plain clothes officer in a case of mistaken identity, Valchek once more tried to defend him but as the officer was African American, racial issues arose leading to Prez's possible termination. Although Valchek seemingly had Prez's African American Lieutenant Cedric Daniels to help placate the murder, Prez decided to leave the department anyway.^[1]

In season four Valchek continues to support Carcetti, who is now running for Mayor. He feeds Carcetti information from within the department including revealing the murder of a state's witness named Braddock on the eve of a key debate. Valchek becomes a mentor in political maneuevering to Thomas "Herc" Hauk, an officer from Mayor Clarence Royce's security detail who stumbles across Royce engaged in a sexual act. Valchek advises Herc of how to use this event to his advantage helping Herc get a promotion to sergeant out of the Mayor.

When Burrell replaced a veteran detective with a rookie on the Braddock case Valchek fed him this information too. The political fallout from this leak led to the Mayor deciding to replace Burrell as commissioner. After the election Carcetti decided to promote Valcheck to Deputy of Administration as a reward for feeding him information and acting as a go-between during the campaign. He was promoted at the same ceremony as Cedric Daniels. His daughter and wife showed up to give him support however Prez was conspicuously absent. ^[10]

[edit] Major Case Unit

[edit] Kenneth Dozerman

• Played by: Rick Otto
• Appears in:

Season 3: "Time After Time"; "All Due Respect" and "Back Burners".

Season 4: "Refugees"; "Alliances" (uncredited).

Dozerman is an officer in the Baltimore police department. In season 3 he worked narcotics in Sgt. Ellis Carver's drug enforcement unit squad in the Western District. He became friends with Thomas "Herc" Hauk and Carver while working in the squad. Dozerman was shot and injured in a buy bust operation gone awry. His service weapon was also stolen prompting Bunk Moreland to have to search for it. When the weapon was found it was returned to Dozerman at a press conference.^[1]

In season 4 Dozerman transferred into the Major Case Unit when Herc became the new sergeant. Dozerman took part in Lieutenant Marimow's first series of failed raids as unit commander. Following these raids helped Herc to set up video surveillance of Marlo Stanfield.

[edit] Thomas "Herc" Hauk

Main article: Thomas "Herc" Hauk

Herc was a capable narcotics detective but his tendency towards brutality and acting without thinking held up his career progression. To improve his chances of making sergeant he transferred to the Mayor's security detail.

[edit] Charlie Marimow

• Played by: Boris McGiver
• Appears in season 4: "Home Room"; "Refugees"; "Alliances".

Marimow is a lieutenant in the Baltimore police department. He was installed as the commander of the major crimes unit by William Rawls. Rawls needed Marimow to control the unit's detectives and prevent them upsetting politicians. Marimow also renewed the unit's focus on violent drug dealers and closed down their wiretaps on Marlo Stanfield. Marimow's caustic command style drove Kima Greggs and Lester Freamon to request transfers to the Homicide unit. His unit's staffing problems were solved by bringing in Sergeant Thomas "Herc" Hauk and Officer Kenneth Dozerman.

Marimow prides himself on being a streetwise commander and having worked his way up through the ranks. However, his first series of raids failed spectacularly because he underestimated his targets. This failure led Marimow to rethink his approach.

[edit] Caroline Massey

• Played by: Joilet F. Harris
• Appears in

Season 3: "Time After Time"; "All Due Respect"; "Dead Soldiers"; "Reformation" and "Middle Ground".

Season 4: "Boys of Summer"; "Soft Eyes"; "Refugees".

Officer Massey joined the show in season three as a member of the major case unit under Lieutenant Cedric Daniels. Massey is a world-weary officer with a penchant for sarcasm. She was particularly adept at deciphering the slang used Barksdale drug dealers on wiretaps of cellular phones. Her diligent work manning wiretaps earned the respect of detectives Roland "Prez" Pryzbylewski and Lester Freamon. Massey was part of Freamon's undercover operation to supply pre-wiretapped phones to the Barksdale organization through their purchaser Bernard.

In season 4 Massey continued to work with the Major Case Unit and settled into her role. She was seen arguing with Detective Leander Sydnor over their workspace. When the unit was assigned Lieutenant Marimow as a commander Freamon transferred out. Massey and Sydnor were left to face Marimow closing down their wiretaps and ordering raids on weeks old targets.^[1][11]

[edit] Leander Sydnor

Main article: Leander Sydnor

Sydnor is a young, married detective in the Baltimore major case unit with a talent for investigative work and the stomach for drawn out cases. Although Sydnor's dialogue is seemingly kept to the bare minimum, he has been part of the Major Case Unit throughout all 4 seasons of the show.

[edit] Homicide

[edit] Ray Cole

• Played by: Robert F. Colesberry
• Appears in:

Season 1: "The Target" (uncredited); "The Detail" (uncredited); "The Wire"; "The Cost" and "The Hunt".

Season 2: "Ebb Tide"; "Collateral Damage" and "Undertow".

Cole was a somewhat inept member of Sergeant Landsman's homicide squad under the command of Major Rawls.

Cole was the lead investigator of the death of Anton "Stinkum" Artis. His colleague Bunk Moreland told him that there was information about the case as part of a wiretap investigation that Bunk's partner Jimmy McNulty was involved in. The information would jeopardize the wiretap so they promised they would give it to Cole when the case closed. McNulty never intended to give Cole the information because the perpetrator was his informant Omar Little.

Cole was second detective on the shooting of Wendell "Orlando" Blocker and Detective Kima Greggs working with lead investigator Detective Ed Norris. This case was solved when Wee-Bey Brice confessed to the shooting.

Cole was initially assigned the fourteen Jane Doe homicides that Rawls had tried to dodge. McNulty was responsible for the cases reaching Rawls desk and when discussing Cole's misfortune with Bunk he called him collateral damage. Landsman reassigned the case to Bunk and Lester Freamon because he felt he needed his most capable detectives on it.

Cole died unexpectedly and the department held a wake for him. Landsman gave a eulogy for Cole at the wake.^[1]

Cole was played by the show's late executive producer Robert F. Colesberry and the character's wake was in part a tribute to the actor who portrayed him.

[edit] Lester Freamon

Main article: Lester Freamon

Freamon is a quiet and methodical older detective who quietly makes major contributions to the series investigations.

[edit] Kima Greggs

Main article: Kima Greggs

Greggs is a tenacious investigator and a rookie homicide detective. She was a key member of the major case unit and proved herself on both the Barksdale and Sobotka investigations. She struggles to balance her life as a police officer with her role as a potential mother with her partner.

[edit] Vernon Holley

• Played by: Brian Anthony Wilson
• Appears in:

Season 1: "The Wire" and "The Hunt".

Season 2: "Port in a Storm".

Season 3: "Amsterdam"; "Slapstick"; "Reformation" and "Mission Accomplished".

Season 4: "Soft Eyes"; "Alliances"; "Margin of Error"; "Unto Others"..

Holley is a homicide detective in the Baltimore Police Department homicide unit under the command of Major Rawls and later Colonel Foerster. Holley and his partner Ed Norris caught the case of the murder of Omar Little’s boyfriend Brandon. They recognized a connection to the recent murder of Omar’s crew member Bailey because both corpses were found in Kevlar vests. They called in their colleague Jimmy McNulty and the Barksdale detail's work secured a conviction for the murder against soldier Wee-Bey Brice.

Following the shooting of detective Kima Greggs Holley found her confidential informant Bubbles paging her from a payphone. Holley assumed he was a suspect and brought him in for interrogation. When Bubbles was unable to respond to his questions Holley started to beat Bubbles. Eventually Bubbles asked for McNulty and the situation was cleared up.

In season 2 Holley was briefly seen investigating the murder of Frank Sobotka. In season 3 he is assigned to investigate the murder of Tosha Mitchell and Tank and later the shooting of Stringer Bell, both working with Bunk Moreland. Holley initially works as the secondary investigator on Norris' case of a murdered state's witness named Braddock in season 4. Later he catches the case of a delivery woman murdered in the convenience store of Old Face Andre with Detective Crutchfield. They interview Andre and he identifies Omar Little as the killer. When Omar is arrested he manages to convince Bunk Moreland he is innocent and Bunk asks Crutchfield and Holley to re-open the case. Crutchfield refuses to entertain the idea.^[1] Holley however went with Bunk to the crime scene reluctantly but was able to view evidence with Bunk confirming Omar's innocence in the shooting.

[edit] Jay Landsman

Main article: Jay Landsman (The Wire)

Landsman is a squad sergeant in the homicide unit who must divide his loyalties between his men and his superiors.

[edit] Bunk Moreland

Main article: Bunk Moreland

Bunk is a well liked and proficient member of the homicide unit. Although he is a great detective, Bunk has many faults in his personal life.

[edit] Ed Norris

• Played by: Ed Norris
• Appears in:

Season 1: "The Cost"; "The Hunt" and "Sentencing".

Season 2: "Stray Rounds".

Season 3: "Time After Time"; "All Due Respect" and "Dead Soldiers".

Season 4: "Boys of Summer"; "Soft Eyes"; "Alliances" (uncredited); "Margin of Error"; "Unto Others".

Ed Norris is a homicide detective. Norris and his squad mate Vernon Holley were assigned the case of the murder of Omar Little’s boyfriend Brandon. They recognized a connection to the recent murder of Omar’s crew member Bailey because both corpses were found in Kevlar vests. They called in their colleague Jimmy McNulty and the Barksdale details work secured a conviction for the murder against soldier Wee-Bey Brice.

Norris was also lead detective on the shooting of Wendell "Orlando" Blocker and Kima Greggs this time working with Detective Ray Cole. This case was also solved when Wee-Bey confessed to the shooting.

In season two he appeared briefly when investigating the shooting of a child by a stray bullet. In season 3 he attended the wake of his colleague Ray Cole. Norris remains with the homicide unit in season 4 when he is the lead investigator in the politically important murder of a state's witness. He is briefly taken off the case and replaced with Greggs, now a rookie in the squad, in order to slow progress because of pressure from the Mayor. Norris is soon reinstated when this story is leaked to the press. He works alongside Greggs to maintain a coverup story that they were always working together. Norris secures an informant for the witness murder, but his attempt to break the story right before the election leads to him and Greggs being sent off to a security detail at a polling station for the day. Norris continues to pursue this lead after the election, however Greggs solves the case with a careful recanvassing of the crime scene before he is able to make progress. She earns Norris' respect with her work although he responds to the knowledge that the shooting was random with incredulity because of the political ramifications it had.^[1]

Norris is played by convicted felon and ex-police commissioner of Baltimore Ed Norris. His cameo appearances are a source of irony on the show, and he is often given dialogue bemoaning the state of the Baltimore police department.^[12]

[edit] Western District

[edit] Ellis Carver

Main article: Ellis Carver

Drug enforcement unit sergeant and loyal partner.

[edit] Anthony Colicchio

• Played by: Benjamin Busch

Season 3: "Time After Time"; "All Due Respect"; "Dead Soldiers"; "Amsterdam"; "Straight and True"; "Homecoming"; "Back Burners"; "Moral Midgetry"; "Slapstick" and "Mission Accomplished".

Season 4: "Boys of Summer"; "Alliances" (uncredited); "Margin of Error".

Colicchio is a narcotics officer in Sergeant Ellis Carver's drug enforcement unit squad in the Western District of the Baltimore Police Department. He was often partnered with fellow squad members Thomas "Herc" Hauk and Lloyd "Truck" Garrick. Colicchio was part of the operation that resulted in the shooting of Officer Kenneth Dozerman. Along with the rest of the squad Colicchio was involved in policing drug tolerant zones set up by his district commander Howard "Bunny" Colvin without the knowledge of his superiors. It was Colicchio who caused the dealers to start calling the tolerant zone on Vinson street "Hamsterdam" after using Amsterdam's liberal drug laws as a metaphor for Colvin's new policies. Colicchio quickly became disillusioned with the task and began to act out but could not bring himself to say anything to Colvin. In a discussion with Herc and Carver about Hamsterdam Colicchio described it as "moral midgetry." He was with Herc when he phoned the paper to report Colvin's actions.

Colicchio remained in Carver's squad in season 4 and Carver tried to bring him around to his new way of doing things - getting to know the street dealers and cultivating informants. Colicchio took part in Lieutenant Charlie Marimow's series of failed raids in the Western district. Colicchio was also present for the arrest of Omar Little on a murder warrant and relished bringing in the legendary criminal.^[1]

[edit] Lloyd "Truck" Garrick

• Played by: Ryan Sands
• Appears in:

Season 3: "Time After Time"; "All Due Respect"; "Homecoming"; "Back Burners"; "Moral Midgetry"; "Slapstick"; "Reformation" and "Mission Accomplished".

Season 4: "Boys of Summer".

Garrick was a narcotics officer in Sergeant Ellis Carver's squad in the Western District of the Baltimore Police Department. He was often partnered with fellow squad members Thomas "Herc" Hauk and Anthony Colicchio. Garrick was part of the operation that resulted in the shooting of Officer Kenneth Dozerman. Along with the rest of the squad Garrick was involved in policing drug tolerant zones set up by his district commander Howard "Bunny" Colvin without the knowledge of his superiors. He was with Herc when he phoned the paper to report Colvin's actions and again when he met with a reporter.^[1]

[edit] Jimmy McNulty

Main article: Jimmy McNulty

McNulty is a dedicated Baltimore police officer with many personal problems.

[edit] Michael Santangelo

• Played by: Michael Salconi
• Appears in

Season 1: "The Target"; "The Detail"; "The Buys"; "Old Cases"; "The Wire"; "One Arrest"; "Game Day"; "The Cost"; "The Hunt"; "Cleaning Up" and "Sentencing".

Season 2: "Port in a Storm".

Season 3: "Straight and True"; "Homecoming"; "Slapstick" and "Mission Accomplished".

Season 4: "Boys of Summer"; "Margin of Error".

In season 1 Santangelo was a detective in the homicide unit and followed Jimmy McNulty into the Barksdale Detail where Major Rawls tasked him with passing back information on McNulty. He tried to resist informing on a fellow cop and Rawls gave him an ultimatum - co-operate or clear a case by days end. Sergeant Landsman recommended a psychic, Madame LaRue, and Santangelo was desperate enough to try her. Rather than the psychic it was his squadmates McNulty and Bunk Moreland who solved a case for him. With the clearance, Santangelo was able to refuse Rawls's demands.

He was demoted to officer at the end of season one for failing to give Rawls anything useful. In season 2 he is seen as a beat officer and arrests Bubbles and Johnny Weeks when they try to steal medical supplies from an ambulance responding to an overdose. In season 3 he drives the narcotics wagon in Major Colvin's Western district - a large prisoner transport vehicle used to round up drug dealers. He remains a partrolman in the Western District as season 4 begins. Santangelo was one of several officers present for the arrest of Omar Little on a murder warrant.^[1]

[edit] Eddie Walker

• Played by: Jonnie Louis Brown
• Appears in:

Season 4: "A New Day"; "Misgivings"; "Unto Others"; "Margin of Error"; "Soft Eyes".

Walker is a corrupt African American patrolmen in the Western District who often robs suspected drug dealers and users in the neighborhood which he patrols. Known as being both crooked and antagonistic on the street, he is feared and loathed by Namond, Michael, and the other young drug dealers as he is seeing brutalizing them often with or without provocation. Walker also appears very hateful towards other African Americans in general through statements to the kids such as "Get your black asses back on the reservation where you belong." Michael orchestrates an act of revenge on Walker, by robbing him at gunpoint and throwing yellow paint on him. Walker tells fellow officers that he was attacked by Bloods.

[edit] Others

[edit] Claude Diggins

• Played by: Jeffrey Fugitt
• Appears in season 2: "Ebb Tide"; "Collateral Damage"; "Undertow"; "All Prologue"; "Duck and Cover"; "Storm Warnings" and "Port in a Storm".

Diggins is a Baltimore police department marine unit officer who partners Jimmy McNulty when he is assigned to the unit. Diggins was forgiving of McNulty's time away from the unit and shared his own boat with Bunk Moreland and McNulty to pose as a fishing craft when observing Spiros Vondas.

[edit] Randall Frazier

• Played by: Erik Todd Dellums
• Appears in

Season 1: "The Detail"

Season 2: "Collateral Damage"; "Hot Shots" and "All Prologue"

Season 3: "All Due Respect"

Frazier is a Baltimore police department medical examiner. He was first seen when involved in the investigation of the death of William Gant. Later he was responsible for the autopsies of fourteen unidentified women found at the Baltimore docks. He helped Jimmy McNulty to prove that the deaths occurred in the city jurisdiction by establishing time of death based on the air supply in the container the bodies were discovered in. He also linked the bodies to a specific plastic surgery clinic by identifying a breast implant type that several of the women shared and tracing the serial number. This information helped the detectives to establish that the women were sex trade workers.

[edit] Patrick Mahone

• Played by: Tom Quinn
• Appears in season 1: "The Detail"; "The Buys" and "Old Cases".

Mahone was an elderly detective from the property unit who worked with the Barksdale detail. He was punched by Bodie Broadus, a young drug dealer, when the detail raided the low rise projects. Mahone took early retirement following his injury.

[edit] Augustus Polk

• Played by: Nat Benchley
• Appears in

Season 1: "The Detail"; "The Buys"; "Old Cases"; "The Pager" and "The Wire".

Season 2: "Collateral Damage" and "Hot Shots".

Polk was an aging detective from the property unit who worked with the Barksdale and Sobtoka details. He is often called Auggie.

After his partner, Patrick Mahone, retired due to injury Polk considered deliberately injuring himself to follow in his partners footsteps. Unable to follow through on his plan, he became despondent and went on a drinking binge. He missed several days work and when he was in he was drunk and asleep most of the time. Lieutenant Daniels told him to take sick leave for his alcohol problem or work "wet". Polk opted for sick leave and was off until the case was closed.

He was in the first Sobtoka detail under Lt. Grayson but once Daniels was put in command and allowed to choose his own people he was moved back to property.

[edit] Beadie Russell

Main article: Beadie Russell

Russell is a port authority police officer and a single mother who develops an interest in case work following a chance discovery.

[edit] FBI

[edit] Terrence "Fitz" Fitzhugh

• Played by: Doug Olear
• Appears in

Season 1: "The Target"; "The Buys" and "Sentencing".

Season 2: "Stray Rounds"; "Storm Warnings"; "Bad Dreams" and "Port in a Storm".

Season 3: "Moral Midgetry"; "Slapstick"; and "Middle Ground".

Fitz is a special agent with the FBI and a friend of Jimmy McNulty's who often shares information and equipment with him. Fitz helped to inspire McNulty to use modern electronic surveillance in building a case against the Barksdale organization by showing how a confidential informant that he had put him in touch with had given them information that led them to set up video surveillance on a drug production ring. He told McNulty it would be the last major bureau drug investigation in Baltimore because they were shifting resources to counter-terrorism.

Fitz helped McNulty again by giving him some of the FBI's superior recording devices as the ones supplied by the police department were too bulky for undercover work. He warned McNulty that his commander Cedric Daniels had been investigated by the FBI for corruption and they had found an excess of liquid assets. When they handed the case over to Deputy Commissioner Ervin Burrell nothing further came of it.

Fitz also became involved with McNulty's teams case against Frank Sobotka. Major Valchek called in the FBI when he felt that the case had strayed away from his target - Sobotka. The FBI had a particular interest in corrupt unions. When a leak within the FBI seriously damaged the case Fitz realised what had happened and broke the news to Lieutenant Daniels.

In the third season Fitz supplied the major case unit with photo enhancing technology that they used to check number plates on Barksdale organization vehicles.

Fitz is based on a real FBI agent named Jake Fitzsimmons who collaborated on cases with writer and ex-detective Ed Burns.^[13]

[edit] Amanda Reese

• Played by: Benay Berger
• Appears in

Season 1: "Sentencing".

Season 2: "Storm Warnings"; "Bad Dreams" and "Port in a Storm".

Season 3: "Slapstick".

Reese is a Baltimore division FBI supervisor and the superior of Terrence "Fitz" Fitzhugh. She has often worked with Lieutenant Cedric Daniels because of his connection to Fitz, supplying him with resources and running joint cases. She was approached with the Barksdale case to discuss pursuing a corruption angle but Lieutenant Daniels decided that was not the direction he wanted. Her team later worked alongside Daniels' detail to investigate union corruption in the Baltimore ports.

[edit] Court house

[edit] Steven Demper

• Played by: Doug Roberts
• Appears in:

Season 1: "Cleaning Up".

Season 3: "Dead Soldiers".

Season 4: "Home Room".

Demper is a Maryland State's Attorney, serving the district that includes Baltimore. He is the boss of Assistant State's Attorneys Rhonda Pearlman and Ilene Nathan. Demper is widely regarded as being more interested in preserving his elected position than pursuing justice. Pearlman falls out of his favor when a detail she is working with begins to investigate campaign donations made by drug dealers. Mayor Clarence Royce is dissatisfied with Demper but is unable to replace him because of his elected status. In season 4, Royce threatens to drop him from the party ticket if Demper does not go along with Royce's plans to interfere with the Carcetti campaign. Demper loses his bid for re-election to Rupert Bond.

[edit] Ilene Nathan

• Played by: Susan Rome
• Appears in:

Season 1: "The Hunt" and Sentencing".

Season 2: "Undertow" and All Prologue".

Season 4: "Unto Others".

Nathan is an Assistant State's Attorney in Baltimore and colleague of Rhonda Pearlman. As the head of the violent crimes unit she is tasked with prosecuting homicides in the city. Nathan and Pearlman were present when Savino Bratten gave himself up after his involvement in the shooting of a police officer but they failed to negotiate any co-operation from him. Nathan is present for the interrogation of Wee-Bey Brice and negotiates a deal where he admits to several murders to avoid the death penalty. She conducts the prosecution against Marquis "Bird" Hilton and is reluctant to use Omar Little as a witness. Once he has testified and a guilty verdict is returned she is grateful enough to offer him a free pass on any single minor charge in the future for his assistance. When Omar is arrested for murder several years later he convinces Detective Bunk Moreland that he is innocent and Bunk convinces Nathan to have him transferred to a safer prison. Nathan tells Bunk that she now considers her debt to Omar repayed. Nathan assists Kima Greggs and Detective Ed Norris in investigating the Braddock murder case. She attends the wake of CID and homicide unit commander Raymond Foerster. When Rupert Bond is elected State's attourney he promotes Nathan to second deputy State's Attorney and Pearlman took over her role in the violent crimes unit.

[edit] Rhonda Pearlman

• Played by: Deirdre Lovejoy
• Appears in:

Season 1:

Season 2:

Season 3:

Season 4: "Boys of Summer".

Assistant State's Attorney Rhonda Pearlman has been the legal system liaison for all of Lt. Daniel's investigations on the show. Previously she was tasked with charging all narcotics cases in the city. She eventually got into a relationship with Daniels. She also had a casual relationship with McNulty. Is promoted to deputy chief prosecuter in charge of violent crimes in season 4.

[edit] Daniel Phelan

• Played by: Peter Gerety
• Appears in:

Season 1: "The Target"; "The Detail"; "Old Cases"; "The Pager"; "One Arrest"; "Lessons"; "The Cost"; "The Hunt"; "Sentencing".

Season 2: "All Prologue".

Season 3: "Reformation" and "Middle Ground".

Judge Phelan is a friend of Jimmy McNulty's who presided over the D'Angelo Barksdale murder trial. After seeing a witness change her statement in his courtroom he was forced to let Barksdale go free when the jury gave a not guilty verdict. After discussing the case with McNulty he learned that the witness was most likely paid to change her statement and that D'Angelo was part of a much larger drug dealing operation. Phelan took this information to the Police Deputy Commissioner of Operations, Ervin Burrell, and insisted the police look into it - his intervention was instrumental in setting up the Barksdale detail.

Phelan also helped to sustain the investigation. He leaked information about the murder of another witness from the trial, William Gant, to the press which increased interest in the case. McNulty felt that Phelan had gone behind his back and their relationship was soured for a time. When Phelan was removed from the mayor's re-election ticket his passion for the case waned as he realised his actions had cost him political capital.

Phelan maintains a flirtatious relationship with Assistant States Attourney Rhonda Pearlman and admitted to McNulty that he was attracted to her.

Phelan also presided over the trial of Marquis "Bird" Hilton for the murder of William Gant and was pleased to accept Omar Little's testimony and give Bird a strict sentence.

[edit] Politics

[edit] Jen Carcetti

• Played by: Megan Anderson
• Appears in:

Season 3: "Dead Soldiers"; "Homecoming"; "Back Burners"; "Moral Midgetry"; "Reformation" and "Mission Accomplished".

Season 4: "Boys of Summer"; "Soft Eyes"; "Margin of Error"

Jen Carcetti is the wife of councilman Tommy Carcetti. They have two children, a son and a daughter. Jen supports Tommy's policial ambitions and is seemingly unaware of his infidelity.

[edit] Tommy Carcetti

Main article: Tommy Carcetti

Tommy Carcetti is the new Mayor of Baltimore.

[edit] Theresa D'Agostino

• Played by: Brandy Burre
• Appears in:

Season 3: "Amsterdam"; "Straight and True"; "Homecoming"; "Back Burners"; "Moral Midgetry"; "Slapstick"; "Reformation"; "Middle Ground" and "Mission Accomplished".

Season 4: "Boys of Summer"; "Soft Eyes"; "Home Room"; "Refugees"; "Alliances"; "Margin of Error"

Theresa D'Agostino is a Washington-based political consultant and campaign fixer. She graduated from Maryland law-school at the same time as councilman Tommy Carcetti. The two reconnected at a Baltimore bar while she was working in town. Carcetti aggressively pursued D'Agostino to work as his campaign manager for his planned run for Mayor of Baltimore. She was eventually recruited by Carcetti despite her reluctance to work for a white candidate in a predominantly African American city.

Once on board, D'Agostino was quick to plan a strategy for the campaign. Carcetti suggested they use his colleague Anthony Gray, who was also planning to run, to split the African American voter base. D'Agostino encouraged Carcetti to let Gray take the lead in their public safety subcomittee meetings and arranged for Carcetti to receive coaching on his public speaking. She felt that he was too focussed on winning arguments and that he should put appearing likeable first.

When Carcetti discovered that a police district commander, Howard "Bunny" Colvin, had created drug tolerant zones in Western Baltimore D'Agostino saw an opportunity to attack the current mayor, Clarence Royce, and encouraged her candidate to use it. D'Agostino also pursued a casual relationship with detective Jimmy McNulty. She tapped him for information about Colvin, but he ended the relationship instead, realizing that she did not value it very highly.

In season 4, the campaign was in full swing. D'Agostino encouraged Carcetti to become involved in fundraising, going as far as insisting that he stay in his office until he had raised set amounts. She also shielded him as best she could from polling data that did not match his expectations. She worked alongside new deputy campaign manager Norman Wilson. D'Agostino's strategising and Wilson's hard work on the campaign trail both contributed to Carcetti's victory in the mayoral election. D'Agostino chose the night of his win to approach him for her "win bonus" by seducing him. When Carcetti resisted her advances she was bemused but respected his wishes. D'Agostino returned to Washington to work for the DCCC after her success in Baltimore.^[14]

[edit] Marla Daniels

• Played by: Maria Broom
• Appears in:

Season 1: "The Detail"; "One Arrest"; "Lessons" and "Sentencing".

Season 2: "Collateral Damage"; "Backwash" and "Port in a Storm".

Season 3: "Time After Time"; "Amsterdam"; "Homecoming"; "Slapstick" and "Mission Accomplished".

Season 4: "Home Room", "Refugees"

Marla is an aspiring politician and the estranged wife of Lieutenant Cedric Daniels. She always had ambitions for her husband to progress in the police force and his failure to do so contributed to the demise of their relationship.

Cedric seemed likely to receive a promotion until he was assigned to run the controversial Barksdale detail. His commanding officers formed the detail to appease an angry judge and wanted a quick investigation to show good faith. Throughout the first series Marla councilled Cedric to take the case his superiors had demanded but he was pushed to better investigative work by the detectives he commanded.

When Cedric was banished to evidence control after upsetting his superiors with his tenacious investigation of Avon Barksdale Marla convinced him to leave the department and become a lawyer. Cedric was ready to do so until he got a second chance to do the kind of investigative work he wanted in the new Sobotka detail. Marla greeted his decision to stay with the police with worry and skepticism and eventually they separated.

Marla ran for office in season three, with the aid of Cedric posing as a contented (and uniformed) husband. Marla had the support and guidance of State Delegate Odell Watkins but was running against an old ally of Mayor Clarence Royce. Because of her political standing her husbands promotion to major was held up by Royce. She eventually sought a reconciliation with Cedric but he declined as he had become involved with Rhonda Pearlman. When Marla's rival was embarrassed because of a scandal in her district, the Mayor was free to lend his support and allowed Cedric's promotion to pass.

Even with the Mayor's support Marla is having trouble overcoming her entrenched rival, Eunetta Perkins. She attends the funeral of a witness murdered in the district alongside Watkins and learns that Tommy Carcetti is supportive of her campaign despite her being part of Royce's ticket. In season 4 in is said that Marla won her campaign as the new 11th District Councilwoman. ^[15]

[edit] Clayton "Clay" Davis

• Played by: Isaiah Whitlock, Jr.
• Appears in:

Season 1: "One Arrest"; "The Cost" and "Cleaning Up".

Season 2: "Hot Shots" and "Port in a Storm".

Season 3: "Amsterdam"; "Straight and True"; "Homecoming"; "Moral Midgetry" and "Slapstick".

Season 4: "Soft Eyes", "Margin of Error"

Clay Davis is a corrupt State Senator from Baltimore who puts on a friendly public face even as he takes bribes from numerous sources. In season one, Lieutenant Daniels' Barksdale detail discovered $20,000 in the car of Davis' driver, Damien Lavelle "Day-Day" Price, while in the West Baltimore projects. The unit was very interested in any possible links between the Senator and the Barksdale crew, and detective Freamon wanted to expand the investigation to include Davis in the wiretaps. But Deputy Police Commissioner Ervin Burrell was adamant that the investigation end quickly and that the focus remain on the drug dealers. Burrell called Daniels into a closed-door meeting with the Senator, hoping to get his cooperation, but was unable to persuade him to drop the case. However, Burrell pulled the plug on Daniels' investigation as soon as he could, and Clay Davis' involvement went uninvestigated.

In season two, Davis was seen at a Democratic fundraiser attended by stevedore union leader Frank Sobotka. Davis accepted contributions from the union in return for assurances that he would vote for constructing the granary pier that Sobotka believed would revive activity at the shipyard. However, at season's end, with the union in ruins, Sen. Davis was seen with a shovel at a groundbreaking ceremony for dockside condominiums where Frank had wanted the granary.

The third season revisited the Davis-Barksdale connections hinted at in season one. The viewers learned that Senator Davis had been acting as a political consultant for Stringer Bell, taking bribes from the Barksdale organization to influence political currents and win state government contracts for the drug empire's legitimate business front, B&B. However, building regulations continued to frustrate the development of Bell's real estate purchases, and when he read in the paper that block grants were given to several city developers but not B&B, he became suspicious. Bell described the matter to his lawyer Maury Levy, who concludes, with a hint of amusement, that Davis had been playing off Stringer's inexperience in legitimate business and had simply been taking the money and doing nothing for it. Stringer, furious, told Avon that he wanted the Senator killed, but Avon warned him that assassinating a public figure would be dangerously out of their league. Stringer accepted that his trust in Davis was foolish.

Davis was mayor Clarence Royce's deputy campaign chairman and a key fundraiser in his re-election campaign. Davis threatened to withdraw his support from Royce when the Baltimore police department served a subpoena for his financial records. Davis told Royce that he expected him to protect him from police investigation at a city level and that he never asks where his donors receive their money. The subpoena was delivered by detective Leander Sydnor from the major crimes unit as part of an investigation into the Barksdale organizations finances.

Davis later approached Tommy Carcetti the day before the mayoral primary with an offer. Davis would hold off on helping the mayor bring out the vote in exchange for Carcetti making donations to Davis' own funds. They agreed on a $20,000 payment, but on Election Day, Carcetti's staff watched as Davis campaigned for the mayor as if the deal had not taken place. The Senator showed up at Carcetti's victory party that night, explaining that Royce had simply offered more money, and that he could have fleeced Carcetti out of more money but didn't.^[16]

[edit] Gerry

• Played by: Karen Vicks
• Appears in season 4: "Boys of Summer" (uncredited); "Soft Eyes" (uncredited); "Refugees"; "Margin of Error"; "Unto Others"; .

Gerry was a key member of Tommy Carcetti’s campaign staff in the Mayoral election race. She helped to decide campaign strategy along with Norman Wilson and Theresa D'Agostino. She also helped Carcetti to plan his time in office.

[edit] Anthony Gray

• Played by: Christopher Mann
• Appears in:

Season 3: "Time After Time"; "Dead Soldiers"; "Amsterdam"; "Straight and True"; "Homecoming"; "Moral Midgetry"; "Slapstick" and "Mission Accomplished".

Season 4: "Boys of Summer", "Soft Eyes"; "Alliances"; "Margin of Error".

Gray first appeared as a Baltimore Councilman in Season 3. He is often called Tony by his friends including councilman Tommy Carcetti. In season 3 Gray and Carcetti worked together on the public safety subcommittee. Gray became disillusioned with Major Clarence Royce because of Royce's lack of interest in improving safety for Baltimore's citizens. Alongside Carcetti he often used his position on the committee to berate senior police officials including acting commissioner Ervin Burrell. Gray decided to run for mayor and Carcetti manipulated him into the decision and encouraged him to run. Gray selected education as his primary campaign theme and hoped that Carcetti would join his campaign with a position as council president as a reward. Carcetti had planned to use Gray to split the black vote while running for mayor himself. This deception upset Gray and destroyed their friendship.

Gray continued his campaign and was still angry with Carcetti at the beginning of season 4. Carcetti's deputy campaign manager Norman Wilson fed Gray a story about the police department covering up the murder of a state's witness. Gray took the story public, despite knowing that this was what Carcetti had intended. Gray went ahead anyway because he knew it would hurt the Mayor and help his campaign as well as Carcetti's. Gray was shown attending church with his wife on the eve of the election. Gray lost his election campaign and Carcetti won the Mayoral position.^[17]

[edit] Andy Krawczyk

• Played by: Michael Willis
• Appears in:

Season 2: "Collateral Damage" (uncredited) and "Port in a Storm " (uncredited).

Season 3: "Amsterdam"; "Straight and True"; "Homecoming"; "Moral Midgetry"; "Middle Ground" and "Mission Accomplished."

Season 4: "Soft Eyes"; "Refugees".

Krawczyk initially appeared considering a model of the prospective grain pier condominium development with Major Stanislaus Valchek. He discussed Frank Sobotka's union business and political maneuvering with Valchek. He was later shown breaking ground on the development with state senator Clayton "Clay" Davis.

In season three Krawczyk was seen as a property developing consultant to Stringer Bell. In season four he continues to make campaign donations to Clarence Royce in exchange for assistance with his property developments. Krawczyk also acts as a fund raiser for Royce recruiting other to contribute to his campaign. Krawczyk was a regular fixture at Royce's fundraising poker games where players would deliberately lose to Royce to fund his campaign. Detective Kima Greggs personally served Krawczyk with a subpoena for financial records, as part of Lester Freamon's investigation into the Barksdale money trail.

[edit] Coleman Parker

• Played by: Cleo Reginald Pizana
• Appears in:

Season three: "Time After Time"; "Dead Soldiers"; "Straight and True"; "Homecoming"; "Back Burners"; "Reformation"; "Middle Ground" and "Mission Accomplished".

Season 4: "Boys of Summer"; "Soft Eyes"; "Home Room"; "Refugees"; "Alliances"; "Unto Others"..

Parker is the chief of staff and main advisor to Mayor Clarence Royce. Parker organizes Royces time and limits access to the mayor. Parker was the first to see that Royce was politically vulnerable because of Baltimore's rising crime rate and urged the mayor to sack acting Police Commissioner Ervin Burrell. Royce resisted because he values loyalty and Burrell had always proved useful to him.

When drug tolerant zones set up by police district commander Howard "Bunny" Colvin were exposed in Western Baltimore, Parker realized that it would be a disaster to support them despite a fall in the areas' crime rate. Royce entertained the idea of extending the experiment under a different name, but Parker eventually convinced him that this would be too difficult to explain to the public. Parker again called for Burrell to be sacked and Royce agreed this time. However, Burrell turned Royce's hesitation to his advantage and convinced Royce to allow Colvin to act as the scaepgoat and the police department to take responsibility while Burrell would receive a full term as commissioner as a reward for his loyalty. Parker and Royce agree to fire Burrell once they win re-election.

Parker is a resourceful fund raiser and uses the myor's power to extract maximum funds from his donors by hloding out on their requests. Parker relies on property developer Andy Krawczyk for large donations and assistance in fund raising. He organizes the mayor's re-election campaign including public speaking events with major property developers. He is also responsible for negotiations over debates with the mayor.

Parker is quick to crack down on Burrell when key political figures like Krawczyk and state senator Clay Davis are served with subpoenas for their records by the Baltimore police department. He extracts an assurance from Burrell that there will be no further surprises from the department. However in Royce's first debate one of his opponents Tommy Carcetti scores points against him using knowledge of the recent murder of a states witness that Burrell has failed to tell the mayor about.

The Mayor ordered Parker to institute a series of campaign measures to strike back against Carcetti including disrupting Carcetti's campaign and bullying contributors into solely contributing to the Royce war chest. Despite Parker's best efforts Carcetti continues to gain on the Mayor in the polls. When Burrell reassigns the lead detective on the witness case this gives Carcetti and Royce's other opponent Anthony Gray further ammunition. Parker urges Royce to fire Burrell and this time he agrees.

Parker is dismayed when Royce alienates State Delegate Odell Watkins, a key supporter with influence amongst Baltimore's religious leaders. Royce failed to keep his word about supporting Watkins' protegee Marla Daniels over Royce loyalist Eunetta Perkins. Parker desperately pursues Watkins to urge him to reconsider. This proves to be a turning point in the election race and Royce goes on to be defeated by Carcetti. Royce and Parker later meet with Carcetti and his chief of staff Norman Wilson to amiably discuss the transfer of power.^[18]

[edit] Clarence Royce

Main article: Clarence Royce

Royce was the mayor of Baltimore.

[edit] Odell Watkins

• Played by: Frederick Strother
• Appears in:

Season 3: "Time After Time"; "Dead Soldiers"; "Homecoming"; "Slapstick"; "Middle Ground" and "Mission Accomplished".

Season 4: "Soft Eyes"; "Home Room"; "Refugees"; "Alliances"; "Margin of Error"; "Unto Others".

State Delegate Watkins is a major Baltimore political figure and longtime advisor to Mayor Clarence Royce. Watkins is a wheelchair user. Watkins has strong voter influence and is known as a kingmaker. He is a member of the influential State appropriations committee. Watkins has a more honest approach to politics than most and sometimes becomes frustrated with Royce's putting his practical needs above attempting to improve the city.

In season 3, Watkins backed Marla Daniels' campaign for the Western district council seat. Watkins believed that the council woman Marla aimed to unseat, Eunetta Perkins, had become disinterested in the job. Initially Royce resisted Watkins campaign as Perkins was loyal to him. However, when Western District commander Major Colvin was exposed for creating drug tolerant zones in Perkins district without her knowledge Royce was given the chance to shift his support to Watkins candidate. Watkins was once more disappointed with Royce when he procrastinated over shutting down the drug toleratn zones because of their positive impacts on crime rates. He felt that Royce should have decisively fired Police Commissioner Ervin Burrell over the scandal.

Watkins became further disillusioned with Royce over a witness protection scheme. Watkins worked with Royce's political rival Tommy Carcetti to secure funds for the scheme and asked the mayor to match what they had arranged. The mayor ignored their proposal and Carcetti used this against Royce in a debate when another witness was killed. Watkins and Carcetti both attended the funeral of the murdered witness. Watkins phoned the press to tell them that he would be attending. Carcetti did not speak to the press, knowing that this might impress Watkins.

Watkins split from Royce once and for all when he failed to deliver on his promise to support Daniels. Watkins noticed that Royce's campaign staff had Daniels on his ticket in districts where she was strong but had her opponent Eunetta Perkins in the same position in districts where Daniels was weaker. He angrily confronted Royce about his failure to keep his word and told him he would no longer support him. Carcetti learned of Royce's failure to keep Watkins trust and appealed to Watkins to support him and become a guiding voice in his administration. Watkins' support on the campaign trail swung the election in Carcetti's favour and he became Mayor. Watkins first piece of advice to Carcetti as Mayor elect was that he would be unable to fire the Burrell as police commissioner because of his race.^[19]

[edit] Norman Wilson

Main article: Norman Wilson

Wilson is a professional political operative and deputy campaign manager in a mayoral election race.

[edit] Prison staff

[edit] Dwight Tilghman

• Played by: Antonio D. Charity
• Appears in season 2: "Collateral Damage" (uncredited); "Hot Shots" and "Hard Cases".

Tilghman was a corrections officer at Maryland Correctional Institute who harassed prisoner Wee-Bey Brice because Wee-Bey had murdered one of his relatives. Avon Barksdale tried to negotiate a truce between the two but Tilghman refused to listen. Avon's solution was ruthless and brutal. Knowing that Tilghman was involved in the prison drug trade, he had Stringer Bell follow him to locate his supplier. Bell paid the supplier, Butchie, to give Tilghman tainted heroin. Barksdale lieutenant Shamrock delivered the heroin and made sure it was passed on to Tilghman. Tilghman smuggled the heroin into the prison by concealing it in sweet packets. Once it was distributed to the inmates it resulted in the deaths of several prisoners. An investigation was started and Avon came forward and informed on Tilghman's smuggling activity in exchange for an early parole hearing. Stringer gave Shamrock a packet of sweets containing drugs similar to the ones Tilghman used and ordered him to subtly plant it in Tilghman's car. When prison staff searched Tilghman's car they found the sweet packet Shamrock had planted and Tilghman was then arrested.

[edit] Police relatives

[edit] Cheryl

• Played by: Melanie Nicholls-King
• Appears in

Season 1: "The Target"; "The Cost"; "The Hunt" and "Sentencing".

Season 2: "Ebb Tide"; "Hot Shots"; "Hard Cases"; "All Prologue"; "Storm Warnings" and "Port in a Storm".

Season 3: "All Due Respect" and "Back Burners".

Cheryl is Kima Greggs' partner who shares an apartment with her. Cheryl works in the television news industry and often worries about Kima's safety as a police officer. She hopes that Kima will take a less dangerous job and start a family with her.

After Kima's shooting Cheryl insisted that she take a desk job. Kima acquiesced for a time but eventually returned to investigative work. Cheryl found this hard to understand. Cheryl has a jealous streak and insisted on accompanying Kima when she went to interview a contact in a strip club. Learning more about the case made her a little more understanding of Kima's position.

In season 2 Cheryl became pregnant and in season 3 the couple had a young baby. Kima began to spend less time at home and Cheryl was left to deal with motherhood alone.

[edit] Elena McNulty

• Played by: Callie Thorne
• Appears in:

Season 1: "Old Cases" and "The Cost".

Season 2: "Hot Shots"; "Hard Cases"; "Undertow"; "All Prologue" and "Backwash".

Season 3: "Time After Time"; "Amsterdam" and "Straight and True".

Elena is Jimmy McNulty's estranged wife. They have two children together Sean and Michael.

Elena is protective of her sons and worries that Jimmy is a dangerous influence on them because of his drinking. When he exposed them to danger by having them tail the subject of his investigation, Stringer Bell, she filed for an emergency order to prevent him from seeing the boys. At the court hearing the judge convinced them to work out arrangements between themselves.

In season two Elena was seen at work as a realtor showing a house to Nick Sobotka. Jimmy tried to initiate a reconciliation with Elena and considerably cleaned up his drinking habits and behaviour. The two slept together but in the morning Elena asked Jimmy to leave as she felt it would be unfair on her sons for them to see him in the house.

[edit] Sean McNulty

• Played by: Eric G. Ryan
• Appears in:

Season 1: "The Wire"; "Lessons" and "Sentencing".

Season 2: "Hot Shots".

Season 3: "Time After Time"; "Straight and True" and "Slapstick".

Sean is Elena and Jimmy McNulty's oldest son. He lives with his mother and his brother Michael following his parents separation but still sees his father. Jimmy teaches his sons the front and follow technique and when he spotted Stringer Bell in a market he had them follow him. Michael and Sean managed to record Stringer's number plate, which aided their father's investigation.

[edit] Michael McNulty

• Played by: Antonio Cordova
• Appears in:

Season 1: "Old Cases"; "The Wire" and "Lessons".

Season 3: "Time After Time"; "Amsterdam"; "Straight and True" and "Slapstick".

Michael is Elena and Jimmy McNulty's son. He lives with his mother and his brother Sean following his parents separation but still sees his father. Michael plays soccer and Jimmy tries to attend his games. Jimmy teaches his sons the front and follow technique and when he spotted Stringer Bell in a market he had them follow him. Michael and Sean managed to record Stringer's number plate, which aided their father's investigation.

[edit] The Street

[edit] Barksdale Crew

[edit] Leadership

[edit] Avon Barksdale

Main article: Avon Barksdale

Avon Barksdale was the leader of a drug dealing organization. He is now incarcerated serving the balance of his original sentance.

[edit] D'Angelo Barksdale

Main article: D'Angelo Barksdale

D'Angelo Barksdale was Avon's nephew and a lieutenant in his drug dealing organization. He was killed in prison by a hitman sent by Stringer Bell.

[edit] Stringer Bell

Main article: Stringer Bell

Stringer was Avon Barksdale's second-in-command and the strategist behind their drug dealing organization. He was killed by Omar in Season 3.

[edit] Maurice Levy

• Played by: Michael Kostroff
• Appears in:

Season 1: "The Target"; "The Detail"; "The Wire"; "The Cost"; "The Hunt"; "Cleaning Up" and Sentencing".

Season 2: "Hard Cases" and "All Prologue"

Season 3: "Amsterdam", "Straight and True", "Back Burners", "Middle Ground" and "Mission Accomplished".

Season 4: "Unto Others".

Levy was the Barksdale crew lawyer and advisor to Avon Barksdale and Stringer Bell. Levy represented Avon's nephew D'Angelo Barksdale in the "Poo" Blanchard murder trial and successfully returned a not guilty verdict. Levy's case was greatly improved when Nakeesha Lyles, a key witness, changed her story and refused to identify Barksdale in court.

Levy was also successful in having charges dropped against young Barksdale dealer Bodie Broadus when representing him in juvenile court. Levy claimed that the work was part of his firm's pro bono outreach program to the judge.

Levy also advised Stringer Bell and Avon on how to protect themselves when they suspected they were being investigated. His assertion that they should tie up any loose ends, particularly those not bound by ties of loyalty to them, preceded the deaths of Nakeesha Lyles and Little Man. When Barksdale front operator Wendell "Orlando" Blocker was arrested for attempting to purchase drugs, Levy visited himm in prison with papers to remove him from the liquor licence of his club. Barksdale soldier Savino Bratton was later targeted in a failed undercover operation that resulted in the shooting of Blocker (who had become an informant) and detective Kima Greggs. Levy represented Bratton and managed to limit his charge to a 3-year plea baragain for an attempt to supply fake narcotics.

Levy was instrumental in damage-control when the Barksdale organization was struck by multiple arrests. He ensured that D'Angelo was not kept in police protection so that his mother could reach him and convince him not to testify against Avon. Avon was charged for a minor offence and received a short sentence compared to D'Angelo and soldier Wee-Bey Brice.

Levy successfully negotiated Avon's first parole hearing in exchange for information on a corrupt guard and the deaths of several inmates. Avon had actually set up the deaths to frame the guard, with the reduced sentence as his goal.

Levy was less successful in his defence of Marquis "Bird" Hilton in the William Gant murder trial and particularly struggled with the cross examination of Omar Little. Omar drew parallels between himself and Levy when Levy described him as a parasite feeding off the Baltimore drug trade. Levy was unable to counter. Bird was sentenced to life imprisonment by Judge Daniel Phelan for the murder.

Levy later advised Stringer on his political contributions. He told him that he had been "rainmade" by Senator Clayton "Clay" Davis as Davis took contributions without exerting any influence and then took credit for positive results. Levy defended Avon and most of his organization when a second wiretap investigation led to a mass prosecution. Avon was returned to prison. Levy also represented Poot Carr, who received a four year sentence.

Levy represented Anthony Wardell in the high profile Braddock murder case. He allowed his client to undergo a polygraph test because he was convinced of his innocence on the charge.^[20][21]

Levy is based on several real life drug organization defence lawyers from the 1980s and 1990s that David Simon and Ed Burns knew.^[9]

[edit] Front workers

[edit] Wendell "Orlando" Blocker

• Played by: Clayton LeBoeuf
• Appears in season 1: "The Target"; "The Pager"; "One Arrest"; "Lessons"; "Game Day"; "The Cost" and "The Hunt".

Orlando acted as a front operator for the Barksdale crew and ran their strip club, Orlando's. Orlando had ambitions to get involved with the drug dealing aspect of the organizaton but his superiors needed him to keep a clean record for the clubs licencing. He approached D'Angelo Barksdale to try to involve him in cocaine dealing but D'Angelo refused and eventually told his uncle, Avon. Avon punished the wayward frontman with a humiliating beating.

Orlando was later arrested when he tried to buy drugs from an undercover Maryland State Police officer, and agreed to inform on Barksdale for the police. While imprisoned for the charge he was spotted by another inmate loyal to the Barksdale crew who phoned in Orlando's whereabouts. He was visited by Barksdale organization lawyer Maurice Levy, who was there to take his name off the club's licence rather than offer help. Orlando was killed by Barksdale soldiers Wee-Bey Brice and Little Man in a botched sting operation which also resulted in the shooting of detective Kima Greggs.

[edit] Shardene Innes

• Played by: Wendy Grantham
• Appears in:

Season 1: "The Target"; "The Buys"; "The Pager"; "The Wire"; "Lessons"; "Game Day"; "The Cost"; "Cleaning Up"; "Sentencing".

Season 2: "All Prologue".

Shardene was D'Angelo Barksdale's girlfriend in season one and a dancer at Orlando's. Their first meeting at Orlando's was inauspicious; Shardene asked him to buy her a drink, and he turned her down. Later, she gave an angry customer some of her own money to settle a dispute over his bill. Impressed, D'Angelo asked her out. Shardene and D'Angelo moved in together after seeing each other for a while.

Shardene began co-operating with the Barksdale detail when detectives Lester Freamon and Kima Greggs showed her the body of Keesha - another dancer from the club. D'Angelo had told her that Keesha had been taken to hospital following an overdose at a party; in reality she had (unbeknownst to him) been raped, wrapped in a carpet, and dumped by Wee-Bey Brice.

Shardene moved out of D'Angelo's place soon after she agreed to co-operate with the police. Kima and Freamon wired her with a microphone, and she attempted to eavesdrop on Barksdale's conversations at Orlando's, with little success. Frightened, Shardene begged to be allowed to stop, but Freamon persuaded her to help them determine the floorplan of the club so they could install a hidden camera in Avon Barksdale's office. The effort was successful, and they managed to catch Avon incriminating himself on video.

Freamon and Shardene grew close during the investigation, and by season two, they were sharing an apartment. She helped put the detectives in touch with some dancers when they were investigating the deaths of girls involved in the sex trade.

[edit] Soldiers

[edit] Anton "Stinkum" Artis

• Played by: Brandon Price
• Appears in season 1: "The Target" (uncredited); "The Detail"; "The Buys"; "Old Cases"; "The Pager"; "One Arrest" and "Lessons"

Stinkum was a lieutenant and enforcer in the Barksdale crew. He was first seen in the courtroom during D'Angelo Barksdale's murder trial. Stinkum was responsible for making re-supplies from the crew's base at the Franklin Towers to their territory in the low-rise projects, known as "the pit".

Stinkum was robbed while delivering a re-supply by legendary stick-up man Omar Little. He was later involved in the killing of Omar's boyfriend and accomplice Brandon. Stinkum was identified by a confidential informant Bubbles as an important member of the organization. He was set to be a central piece of the Barksdale detail's case as their investigation progressed. They deciphered the coded communications used to signal him to deliver a re-supply and amassed evidence of him performing the duty. The police seized the resupply from his subordinate Kevin Johnston but allowed Stinkum to go free to avoid arousing suspicion about their surveillance methods.

Avon Barksdale awarded Stinkum the responsibility of taking over new territory and dealing drugs in the territory with a percentage of the profits to go to him. Other Barksdale enforcers organized a party to celebrate Stinkum's promotion. Stinkum was killed by Omar while trying to take a corner controlled by a drug dealer named "Scar," in revenge for the torture and murder of Brandon by Stinkum and associates. Stinkum's murder undermined the case the detail had built against his associates so far.

[edit] Bernard

• Played by: Melvin Jackson, Jr.
• Appears in season 3: "Back Burners"; "Moral Midgetry"; "Slapstick"; "Reformation" and "Mission Accomplished".

Bernard was a soldier in the Barksdale organization. He was given the responsibility of supplying the organization with disposable mobile phones by Shaun "Shamrock" McGinty. Shamrock insisted that Bernard by no more than two phones at any one outlet and provide receipts for his purchases, following Stringer Bell's instructions.

Bernard was convinced to start buying more cell phones from each outlet by his nagging girlfriend Squeak. Squeak also put Bernard in touch with Lester Freamon who was a posing as a conman who could provide them with the phones at lower price. Bernard accepted Freamon's offer and began buying solely from him on the condition that he provide him with receipts. Freamon gave Bernard pre-wiretapped phones that eventually brought down the Barksdale organization. When the investigation was closed with the arrest of Avon Barksdale Bernard and Squeak were also brought in. Bernard joked that he could not wait to go to jail to get away from Squeak.

[edit] Wee-Bey Brice

Main article: Wee-Bey Brice

Wee-Bey was the Barksdale organization's most trusted soldier before being sentenced to life imprisonment for multiple homicides.

[edit] Country

• Played by: Addison Switzer
• Appears in:

Season 2: "Ebb Tide" (uncredited) and "Hot Shots" (uncredited).

Season 3: "Time After Time" (uncredited); "All Due Respect"; "Straight and True" and "Homecoming".

Country was a Barksdale soldier who returned to work for the organization when released from prison in season two. His first task was to trail Bodie Broadus and Shaun "Shamrock" McGinty to Philadelphia to test their ability to follow orders for Stringer Bell. He worked with Shamrock to set up CO Dwight Tilghman so that Avon Barksdale could inform on Tilghman to reduce his prison sentence.

Country was one of Slim Charles few voices of experience in a team of young soldiers in the turf war with Marlo Stanfield. He was killed in an attempted drive by on one of Marlo Stanfield's corners. The driver, Chipper, refused to follow Slim Charles' orders and Country's advice to wait for a phone call before making a move.^[21]

[edit] Gerard

• Played by: Mayo Best
• Appears in season 3: "Dead Soldiers" (uncredited); "Amsterdam"; "Straight and True"; "Homecoming"; "Moral Midgetry"; "Slapstick" and "Mission Accomplished".

Gerard was a Barksdale organization enforcer working under Slim Charles. He often works with Sapper. He was first seen guarding the front door in Omar Little's attempted heist of a Barksdale stash house. Gerard, Sapper and Dennis "Cutty" Wise were charged with finding a thief in the barksdale organization. Cutty's experience made the task simple and Gerard and Sapper punished to culprit with a savage beating.

Gerard received more work when the Barksdale organization became embroiled in a turf war with Marlo Stanfield. He was almost killed in an attempted drive by on one of Stanfield's corners. Gerard's car was supposed to wait for Cutty and Slim Charles to strike from an alley but the driver, Tater, was impatient and set off early. Both Tater and Country were killed in the botched assault. Gerard and Sapper were later involved in the attempted shooting of Omar's grandmother in violation of the Sunday truce. They were ordered to replace a hat that they damaged in this unsanctioned action. Gerard was arrested for weapons violations at a Barksdale safehouse alongside Avon Barksdale at the end of season 3.

[edit] Marquis "Bird" Hilton

• Played by: Fredro Starr
• Appears in:

Season 1: "The Pager" (uncredited) and "One Arrest".

Season 2: "All Prologue".

Bird was a foul mouthed soldier in the Barksdale crew. He told police that Bird was responsible for the murder of state witness William Gant. Gant was a witness to the altercation where D'Angelo Barksdale killed "Poo" Blanchard. He identified him for the police and testified against him in court but another witness changed their story and a not guilty verdict was returned. Bird killed Gant shortly after D'Angelo's release as a warning to others not to testify against the Barksdale organization.

Omar Little told the police that Bird had a favourite gun that he had seen him use to shoot Gant. Omar informed on Bird because he was involved in the torture and murder of his boyfriend Brandon. Once Omar's story was corroborated by an independent eye witness a warrant was put on Bird. Omar told the police they would find him taking drugs away from Barksdale territory because using was against the rules and that they would need to be careful as Bird was reckless. The arrest was made and Bird was found with weapon on him. The ballistics report matched the weapon and Omar testified against Bird in court. Bird was convicted of murder and sentenced to life imprisonment.

[edit] Little Man

• Played by: Micaiah Jones
• Appears in season 1: "The Detail" (uncredited); "Lessons" (uncredited); "Game Day" (uncredited); "The Cost" (uncredited) and "The Hunt".

Little Man was the street name of a heavyset soldier in the Barksdale crew, his full name is Wintell Royce. He was responsible for enforcing their regime at the Franklin towers specifically tower 221. He was involved in the shooting of Wendell "Orlando" Blocker and detective Kima Greggs with Wee-Bey Brice. Wee-Bey reported that Little Man had been surprised by finding Greggs in the back seat and had shot her immediately. Stringer Bell decided that Little Man was unreliable and with the police cracking down on them because an officer had been shot they would be better off without him. Stringer ordered Wee-Bey to kill Little Man. The murder occurred offscreen, but Wee-Bey later tells the police where to find Little Man's body.

[edit] Perry

• Played by: Perry Blackmon
• Appears in:

Season 1: "Game Day" (uncredited)

Season 2: "Ebb Tide" (uncredited)

Season 3: "Time After Time" (uncredited); "Dead Soldiers" (uncredited); "Moral Midgetry" and "Mission Accomplished" (uncredited).

Perry is a soldier in the Barksdale drug dealing organization who often acts as security at the funeral home they use as a base of operations. He sometimes acts as a bodyguard for Avon Barksdale. He was caught playing video games when Omar Little robbed a Barksdale stash house he was supposed to be providing with security. Perry was arrested for weapons violations at a Barksdale safehouse alongside Avon at the end of season 3.

[edit] Rico

• Played by: Unknown
• Appears in:

Season 2: "Ebb Tide" (uncredited)

Season 3: "Time After Time" (uncredited) and "Dead Soldiers" (uncredited).

Rico is a soldier in the Barksdale drug dealing organization who often acts as security at the funeral home they use as a base of operations. He was caught playing video games when Omar Little robbed a Barksdale stash house he was supposed to be providing with security. Rico was involved in the subsequent shootout. He later acted as security for Poot Carr's corner on orders from Slim Charles. Poot needed protection because of the turf war with Marlo Stanfield. Rico was killed in a drive by shooting by Stanfield soldier Snoop while protecting Poot.

[edit] Sapper

• Played by: Brandan T. Tate
• Appears in season 3: "Dead Soldiers" (uncredited); "Amsterdam"; "Straight and True"; "Moral Midgetry"; "Slapstick" and "Mission Accomplished".

Sapper is a young Barksdale organization enforcer working under Slim Charles. He was first seen guarding the back door in Omar Little's attempted heist of a Barksdale stash house. He often works with Gerard. Gerard, Sapper and Dennis "Cutty" Wise were charged with finding a thief in the barksdale organization. Cutty's experience made the task simple and Gerard and Sapper punished to culprit with a savage beating.

Gerard and Sapper were later involved in the attempted shooting of Omar's grandmother in violation of the Sunday truce. They were ordered to replace a hat that they damaged in this unsanctioned action. Sapper was arrested for weapons violations at a Barksdale safehouse alongside Avon Barksdale at the end of season 3.

[edit] Savino

• Played by: Chris Clanton
• Appears in season 1: "The Target"; "Lessons" (uncredited); "Game Day"; "The Cost" and "The Hunt".

Savino was a soldier in the Barksdale crew, full name Savino Bratten. Savino was first seen in the courtroom for D'Angelo Barksdale's murder trial.^[22] He was involved in the shooting of detective Kima Greggs and Wendell "Orlando" Blocker in a failed buy bust operation. Savino met with Orlando and had him drive to a secluded location, Greggs stayed in Orlando's car for the trip posing as a dancer from his club. leaving the vehicle to get him his drugs. The Barksdale crew had realised Orlando was co-operating with the police and used baking soda instead of cocaine for the deal. Instead of Savino delivering the drugs, enforcers Wee-Bey Brice and Little Man killed Orlando and injured Greggs, not knowing that she was a police officer. Savino had tried to signal them about her presence but they were unable to see him because it was night time. Warrants were written up for Savino because he had been identified in the operation. The police made raids on his mothers house and he was forced to turn himself in. Savino was charged for the attempt to supply fake drugs and was expected to receive a three year sentence when he refused to co-operate. He was represented by Barksdale crew lawyer Maurice Levy.

[edit] Tank

• Played by: Unknown
• Appears in:

Season 2: "Ebb Tide" (uncredited).

Season 3: "Time After Time" (uncredited); "All Due Respect" (uncredited) and "Dead Soldiers" (uncredited).

Tank was a Barksdale organization soldier. He was first seen working with Country checking up on newly promoted crew chief Bodie Broadus as he made a trip to collect a new package of narcotics. Tank was killed by Kimmy from Omar Little's crew during a shootout following an aborted attempt to steal the stash that Tank was guarding.^[21]

[edit] Drug dealers

[edit] Bodie Broadus

Main article: Bodie Broadus

Bodie is an ex-Barksdale organization drug dealer who was running his own small independent crew until Marlo Stansfield forced him to sell for him.

[edit] Poot Carr

Main article: Poot Carr

Poot is a Barksdale organization drug dealer who was serving prison time for his involvement in the drug trade. He was recently released and has hooked up with Bodie managing his package.

[edit] Shaun "Shamrock" McGinty

• Played by: Richard Burton
• Appears in:

Season 2: "Ebb Tide"; "Hot Shots"; "Hard Cases" and "Port in a Storm".

Season 3: "Time After Time"; "All Due Respect"; "Dead Soldiers"; "Amsterdam"; "Straight and True"; "Homecoming"; "Back Burners"; "Moral Midgetry"; "Slapstick"; "Reformation" and "Mission Accomplished".

Shamrock was Stringer Bell's second in command while Avon Barksdale was in prison and oversaw the technical aspects of the drug operation on his behalf. Stringer sounded out his loyalty, along with Bodie Broadus, by having him followed on a trip to Philadelphia to collect a package of drugs. The package was not delivered to Shamrock but he kept to Stringer's orders and meticulously documented his progress. Despite the missing package Stringer was satisfied with their response.

Stringer entrusted Shamrock with driving Bodie to dispose of the weapons used in a misguided territory war after a young child was killed by a stray bullet. Unfortunately Shamrock and Bodie dropped the bag of guns onto a passing freight ship instead of into the water. Little came of it because Bodie had wiped the weapons clean of prints.

Stringer entrusted Shamrock with the set-up of CO Dwight Tilghman to allow Avon to exchange information about Tilghman with the prison authorities for an early parole hearing. Stringer, Shamrock and Country followed Tilghman and learned that he was smuggling heroin into the prison from Butchie. Stringer had Shamrock deliver a package of tainted narcotics to Tilghman through Butchie causing several deaths in the prison. Shamrock also planted narcotics in Tilghman's car to make sure Avon could successfully inform on Tilghman.

Shamrock oversaw Stringers organizational meetings at the funeral home and tried to keep to Robert's rules of order. He was overzealous in following the rules and made the mistake of trying to keep minutres at the first meeting of Stringer co-op, a group of major Baltimore drug players. Stringer curtly reminded Shamrock that he was taking notes on a criminal conspiracy.

Stringer used Shamrock to insulate himself from the street, Shamrock would take phone calls on Stringer's behalf and then organize face to face meetings at secure locations. Shamrock also often acted as a driver for Stringer. Stringer put Shamrock in charge of overseeing Bernard in obtaining disposable cell phones for the organization and then programming the phones for use by the drug dealers. Stringer insisted that Bernard buy a maximum of two phones from any one outlet and checked his receipts to see that he stuck to the rule. Once Shamrock took over he stopped checking up on Bernard and Bernard began to buy phones in bulk eventually getting them from Lester Freamon, an undercover officer in the unit investigating Stringer. Freamon was thereby able to supply Shamrock with pre-wiretapped phones through Bernard.

When Avon was paroled Shamrock continued in his role as Stringer's assistant controlling their drug dealing threw the lieutenants and crew chiefs. Shamrock was peripherally involved in Avon's turf war with Marlo Stanfield, passing messages back and forth to soldiers. Shamrock was arrested alongside Avon at the end of season three.^[21]

[edit] Puddin

• Played by: De'Rodd Hearns
• Appears in:

Season 2: "Ebb Tide"; "Stray Rounds" (uncredited); "Port in a Storm" and "Duck and Cover" (uncredited).

Season 3: "Time After Time"; "All Due Respect"; "Dead Soldiers"; "Back Burners" and "Mission Accomplished" (uncredited).

Puddin is the street name of a drug dealer in Bodie Broadus' crew of the Barksdale organization. Puddin handles the count for Bodie and also spends time with him and Poot Carr when they are not working. Puddin worked at the 221 tower building with Bodie. In season 2 Puddin was involved in the turf war and shoot out that resulted in the death of a 9 year old boy. Puddin stayed with Bodie after the towers were demolished. Bodie was tasked with moving into Marlo Stanfield's territory and his crew got into a turf war with a Stanfield crew led by Fruit. Puddin and his fellow dealers were severely beaten with baseball bats by Fruit, Jamal and a group of Stanfield soldiers as a warning to the Barksdale organization.

Puddin is played by De'Rodd Hearns who also works in the post production department and is the half brother of DeAndre McCullough. DeAndre plays Lamar on The Wire and was the basis of a character in David Simon's The Corner.^[23]

[edit] Ronnie Mo

• Played by:
• Appears in season 1: "Cleaning Up" and "Sentencing".

Ronnie Mo ran "the pit" drug dealing operation for the Barksdale organization before D'Angelo Barksdale. Ronnie Mo's tenure ended when he was arrested. He worked with Bodie, Poot and Wallace. Several months later Ronnie Mo was free, back working for Avon Barksdale and flirting with dancers at Avon's strip club. Ronnie Mo was arrested again, by detective Hauk, when the Barksdale investigation came to an end with many warrants issued. He was sentenced to 15 years imprisonment because of his prior felonies.

[edit] Sterling

• Played by: Curtis Montez
• Appears in season 1: "The Buys" (uncredited), "The Pager" and "Sentencing".

Sterling was a drug dealer in the low rise projects (known as "the pit") under D'Angelo Barksdale. Sterling was in charge of the crew's stash of narcotics and giving vials of drugs to the runners when needed. When Omar Little robbed the crew Sterling refused to tell him where the stash was hidden and Omar shot him in the kneecap. When Stringer Bell asked D'Angelo to flush out leaks in his team by withholding their pay D'Angelo discovered that Sterling was stealing from him along with another hopper named Cass. He was lenient in his punishment and let them with a warning and a demotion to lookouts. When Bodie Broadus took over the pit Sterling was involved in his efforts to drive off a rival crew and was seen wielding a baseball bat alongside Bodie and Poot Carr.

[edit] Wallace

• Played by: Michael B. Jordan
• Appears in season 1: Every episode

A young drug dealer in the Barksdale crew's low rise projects organization (called The Pit) under D'Angelo Barksdale. Wallace was friends with other dealers Poot Carr and Bodie Broadus.

Wallace showed the signs of a half finished education - he could identify famous people on currency better than the rest of his crew but sometimes struggled with the math of dealing and though eager to learn, did not know the rules of chess. He also took responsibility for his numerous younger children in the projects; he was seen packing their lunches, seeing them off to school and helping them with their homework. He betrayed his age when he was found playing with toys when he was supposed to be on lookout duty.

After Omar Little robbed the pit crew's stash of drugs Wallace spotted his accomplice Brandon playing pinball and called this information in to D'Angelo. Wallace waited outside the arcade for Stringer Bell to arrive and when he did he had Wallace point out Brandon. Brandon was then tortured to death and his body was displayed on the hood of a car, coincidentally outside of Wallace's home. Wallace received a quarter of the $2000 bounty on Brandon's head, but was sickened by the event and decided that he wanted out of "the game". He approached D'Angelo and told him he wanted to go back to school - D'Angelo gave him his blessing and some cash. Poot soon found that Wallace had spent the money on drugs and was spending most of his time at home.

Wallace was picked up by the police and agreed to cooperate with the Barksdale detail, revealing Stinger's involvement in the killing of Omar's boyfriend Brandon. In order to keep him safe until the time came to testify, the detail sent Wallace to live with his grandmother in rural Cambridge. After detective Kima Greggs was shot in an undercover operation, the Barksdale detail became so preoccupied with her condition that Wallace was temporarily forgotten. Bored with life away from Baltimore (and having kept in telephone contact with Poot), he returned to the low-rise projects and asked to get involved in the trade again. Bodie suggested he would have to take a demotion but D'Angelo welcomed him back. Stringer Bell became suspicious of Wallace's return and questioned D'Angelo about him. D'Angelo unwittingly tried to reassure Stringer of Wallace's loyalty but Stringer was unconvinced and assigned Bodie to kill Wallace. Bodie and Poot spent the day with Wallace and took him home. Bodie revealed their intentions once they had him cornered and Wallace begged for mercy because of their friendship. Bodie eventually worked up the nerve to kill Wallace and Poot took the gun and finished him off.

D'Angelo was outraged by Wallace's death. It was one of the factors that led D'Angelo to want to leave "the game" himself, and it drove a permanent wedge between he and Stringer (as D'Angelo intuitively sensed Stringer's involvement in the boy's death).

Creator David Simon has described Wallace as an emotional centre to the shows first season and praised Jordan's performance, saying that he was sorry the character had to leave but that the story comes first. Simon sees the character as an illustration of the adage "a 14 year old drug dealer is still 14."^[13]

[edit] Family

[edit] Donette

• Played by: Shamyl Brown
• Appears in:

Season 1: "The Detail"; "The Pager" and "The Cost".

Season 2: "Hot Shots"; "Undertow"; and "Backwash"

Season 3: "All Due Respect"; "Dead Soldiers"; "Amsterdam"; "Homecoming"; "Back Burners" and "Mission Accomplished".

Donette was drug lieutenant D'Angelo Barksdale's girlfriend in season one and is the mother of his son. D'Angelo brought her to a party organized by his uncle, Avon Barksdale, shortly after his acquittal where she first met Stringer Bell. She worried over her financial situation often and nagged D'Angelo for money. The two of them shared a meal together in an uptown restaurant and D'Angelo tried to explain his doubts about his lifestyle to her but she dismissed his worries. D'Angelo began seeing Shardene Innes behind Donette's back during the course of the season. D'Angelo was arrested and sentenced to twenty years in prison at the end of the season.

With D'Angelo imprisoned Avon gave Donette an allowance of support money. Donette got involved with Stinger Bell while D'Angelo was in prison. She visited D'Angelo at Stringer's behest to try to ease the experience of prison for him. Stringer had mounting concerns that D'Angelo was going to reveal information about their drug dealing organization to the authorities and covertly ordered him killed and had the death made to look like a suicide.^[24]

Detective Jimmy McNulty reinvestigated D'Angelo's death and asserted that it was unlikely that he killed himself. When he tried to use this information to coerce Donette into co-operating she refused to talk to him. She passed the information that D'Angelo's death may not have been a suicide on to D'Angelo's mother Brianna.

[edit] Brianna Barksdale

• Played by: Michael Hyatt
• Appears in:

Season 1: "Cleaning Up" and "Sentencing".

Season 2: "Collateral Damage"; "All Prologue"; "Backwash" and "Stray Rounds".

Season 3: "Straight and True"; "Homecoming"; "Moral Midgetry"; "Slapstick"; and "Mission Accomplished".

Season 4: "Margin of Error".

Brianna Barksdale is D'Angelo's mother and Avon's sister. She first appeared bringing food to D'Angelo at work. Brianna grew up in Western Baltimore and her family has always been involved in the drug trade. With her brother Avon controlling narcotics on the Westside Brianna acts as an advisor and helps to manage their profits and receives a healthy income, nice home and new car for her efforts. She raised her son to manage the tough streets and got him working in the family business as soon as he was old enough. D'Angelo was quickly made a lieutenant in Avon's operation despite some misgivings. When D'Angelo was tried for murder Brianna was conspicuously absent from the courtroom. Later she appeared fiercely protective of her son when he was arrested for drug trafficking. She insisted that Avon was in the wrong for sending him alone to pick up a package of narcotics and made her brother promise to do everything he could to help D'Angelo.

When D'Angelo appeared ready to turn against his family it was Brianna who visited him and changed his mind, convincing him to accept a lengthy prison sentence to protect Avon by insisting that Avon would do the same if D'Angelo was willing to step up and run the business. When D'Angelo once more began to withdraw from his family in prison Brianna visited him to try and talk him around. This time D'Angelo insisted that he did not want to see her any more. When D'Angelo appeared to have committed suicide in the prison Brianna was distraught. She was comforted by her brother's second-in-command Stringer Bell, actually the man who had ordered D'Angelo's death. Brianna argued with Avon to allow Stringer to manage their business his way while Avon was imprisoned.

When Avon was released she continued to advise both men. After Jimmy McNulty, having done independent policework, told Donette that there was a chance D'Angelo had been murdered, Donette, unsure of whether to believe him passed the information on to Brianna. Brianna, suspicious, met with McNulty and was convinced by the evidence. She asked Avon, indirectly at first, if he had ordered D'Angelo's killing. He truthfully denied having anything to do with it, although by this point Stringer had admitted ordering the murder to Avon. Brianna was not convinced and began to hold Avon responsible for D'Angelo's death.

Brianna was left at the helm of the Barksdale empire when the mistrust between Stringer and Avon led to Stringer being murdered and Avon being sent back to prison. She is responsible for distributing their funds to family members of crew members in prison. For example she pays for De'Londa Brice to raise Wee-Bey's son, Namond. She eventually decides to cut off the families that she is supporting rationalizing that she has no further income and no need to protect Avon because of the rift in their relationship. She calls Namond and De'Londa to her home to give them the news and tries to make sure that Namond knows that his mother has more than enough to live on already.^[21][25]

[edit] De'Londa Brice

• Played by: Sandi McCree
• Appears in season 4: "Soft Eyes"; "Home Room" (uncredited); "Alliances"; "Margin of Error".

De'Londa is the mother of Namond Brice. Namond’s father Wee-Bey Brice is incarcerated for multiple homicides. De'Londa raises her son using funds from the criminal organization Wee-Bey worked for and she holds Wee-Bey in high regard as a male role model for Namond. She actively encourages him to get involved in Baltimore's drug trade and uses Wee-Bey's contacts to get him work.

De'Londa owns her own home and spends a relatively large amount on clothes and jewellery compared to her neighbours. She ensures that Namond always wears expensive clothes even when he has misbehaved. De'Londa enjoys regular shopping trips to New York and visits to Atlantic City while leaving Namond to care for himself.

When Brianna Barksdale cuts De'Londa off from the Barksdale empire she decides the only way to support her way of life is to have her son work as a crew chief. She bosses onetime Barksdale lieutenant Bodie Brodus into giving Namond a package of his own and instructs him on how best to sell it. She will not let Namond drop out of school for his new work. ^[26]

[edit] Omar's Crew

[edit] Omar Little

Main article: Omar Little

Omar Little is a legendary Baltimore stick-up artist.

[edit] Brandon

• Played by: Michael Kevin Darnall
• Appears in season 1: "The Buys"; "Old Cases"; "The Pager" and "The Wire".

Brandon was Omar Little's boyfriend and a member of his stick-up crew. Brandon mistakenly used Omar's name in front of Barksdale drug dealers as they robbed their stash in the low rise projects; the name was reported back and started a long running feud between Omar and the Barksdale organization. Avon Barksdale placed bounties on all of Omar's crew. Brandon was spotted by Wallace and Poot Carr in an arcade. They alerted D'Angelo Barksdale to the find who passed the message to Stringer Bell. Stringer arrived with three Barksdale enforcers Marquis "Bird" Hilton, Roland "Wee-Bey" Brice and Anton "Stinkum" Artis. Brandon was captured by Bell's crew, tortured, and killed. His body was displayed in the low rise projects as a warning to Omar on Avon's instructions.^[21]

[edit] Bailey

• Played by: Lance Williams
• Appears in season 1: "The Buys"; "Old Cases" and "The Pager".

Full name John Bailey. Bailey was a member of Omar Little's stick-up crew who assists him in robbing the Barksdale crew. He was killed shortly afterwards while visiting relatives. When arrested Barksdale enforcer Wee-Bey Brice confessed to the murder.

[edit] Dante

• Played by: Ernest Waddell
• Appears in:

Season 2: "Hot Shots" and "Bad Dreams".

Season 3: "All Due Respect"; "Dead Soldiers"; "Straight and True"; "Homecoming"; "Moral Midgetry"; "Slapstick"; "Reformation" and "Mission Accomplished".

Dante becomes Omar Little's new boyfriend in the year following Brandon's death and joins his stick-up operation. He is jealous when Omar adds Kimmy and Tosha Mitchell to the crew. In Season Three, Dante accidentally shoots and kills Tosha in an aborted attempt to rob a Barksdale stash house. This unfortunate event causes Kimmy to leave the crew blaming Omar's obsession with the Barksdale organization. Omar decides to pursue the Barksdales alone despite Dante's willingness to help him. Dante is kidnapped by Brother Mouzone and his associate Lamar in an effort to locate Omar. Dante provides them with the necessary information, but only after enduring a brutal beating. He is released after the conclusion of Omar and Mouzone's successful conspiracy to kill Stringer Bell.^[21]

[edit] Kimmy

• Played by: Kelli R. Brown
• Appears in:

Season 2: "Hot Shots" and "Bad Dreams".

Season 3: "All Due Respect"; "Dead Soldiers"; "Straight and True"; "Homecoming"; "Moral Midgetry" and "Slapstick".

Kimmy was partnered with Tosha Mitchell in robbing drug dealers until Omar Little returned to Baltimore and then they both joined his crew. Kimmy was adept at infiltrating drug dealing operations using a number of disguises including posing as a nurse to Omar's disabled veteran. Tosha was accidentally killed by Omar's boyfriend Dante in a heist gone wrong on a Barksdale stash and Kimmy was distraught. She decides to leave Omar's crew as she believes there are easier people to rob than the Barksdale organization.^[21]

[edit] Tosha Mitchell

• Played by: Edwina Findley
• Appears in:

Season 2: "Hot Shots" and "Bad Dreams".

Season 3: "All Due Respect" and "Dead Soldiers".

Tosha was partnered with Kimmy in robbing drug dealers until Omar Little returned to Baltimore and then they both joined his crew. Tosha was accidentally killed by Omar's boyfriend Dante in a heist gone wrong.^[21]

[edit] Butchie

• Played by: S. Robert Morgan
• Appears in:

Season 2: "Hot Shots"; "Storm Warnings" and "Port in a Storm".

Season 3: "Back Burners" and "Reformation".

Season 4: "Refugees";"Margin of Error" (uncredited).

Butchie is Omar Little's bank and advisor. He runs a West-Side Baltimore bar. In season two, Butchie is first seen supplying Corrections Officer Tilghman with the narcotics he sells inside the prison, and later negotiating with Stringer Bell over supplying Tilghman with the poisoned drugs that killed several prisoners. Later in the season it became apparent that he was a connection to Omar, as Proposition Joe arranged a face-to-face meeting between Omar and Stringer by talking to him. In season three, his connection to Omar was more apparent, as several scenes showed Omar getting advice from Butchie. When Omar is able to find Officer Dozerman's missing gun, he returns it to Detective Bunk Moreland through Butchie. Butchie later provides Omar with Avon Barksdale's hideout location. Butchie had known the information all along but hoped to protect Omar by withholding it. In the end Avon is arrested before Omar can use Butchie's tip.

In season 4 Proposition Joe again contacted Butchie to meet with Omar. This time pitting Omar against Marlo Stanfield by convincing him to rob a card game that Marlo attended. When Marlo contrived to have Omar framed for murder in response Butchie was Omar's first phone call when he was arrested.^[21]

[edit] Stanfield Organization

[edit] Marlo "Black" Stanfield

Main article: Marlo Stanfield

Drug dealer who got into a turf war with the Barksdale crew following Avon's release.

[edit] Fruit

• Played by: Brandon Fobbs
• Appears in:

Season 3: "Time After Time"; "All Due Respect"; "Dead Soldiers"; "Amsterdam"; "Homecoming"; "Reformation" and "Mission Accomplished".

Season 4: "Boys of Summer".

In season three Fruit is the head of one of Marlo Stanfield's drug dealing crews, and works with Jamal and Justin. He is identifiable by his ever-present Kangol hat. He is first seen negotiating with Dennis "Cutty" Wise over how to distribute a package of dope; he seems to be fair, but he later rips Cutty off, saying the package was taken by the police. Cutty protests, Fruit pulls a gun on him and forces Cutty to withdraw. Later in the season, his crew's territory is encroached upon by Bodie Broadus and his crew, which sparks the turf war with the Barksdale organization. Cutty, now working for the Barksdale organization. takes part in a strike against Fruit's corner. Fruit escapes because Cutty is unable to bring himself to shoot Fruit.

In "Boys of Summer", the season 4 premiere, Fruit is seen leaving an afterhours nightspot with a woman, Patrice. He is then shot to death by a young dealer from Bodie's crew named Lex, the jealous father of Patrice's baby.^[21]

[edit] Justin

• Played by: Justin Burley
• Appears in:

Season 3: "Time After Time" (uncredited); "Amsterdam" (uncredited); "Reformation" (uncredited); "Middle Ground" and "Mission Accomplished".

Season 4: "Soft Eyes"; "Refugees"; "Unto Others" (uncredited).

Justin is a young drug dealer Fruit's crew in Marlo Stanfield's organization. He is identifiable by his baseball cap, which he wears sideways (and had a brief conversation with Thomas "Herc" Hauk and Ellis Carver about). He discovered the body of Stanfield drug dealer LaTroy with his colleague Jamal and the two fled the streets in fear of their own safety. Toward the end of season three, he gets involved with Dennis "Cutty" Wise and his boxing gym. At first, he resists Cutty's attempts to teach and instill discipline, but he eventually settles down and is seen sparring with (and losing to) a smaller boxer from another gym. In season 4 Justin continues to attend Cutty's gym and train as a boxer. As the gym grows Justin develops a superior attitude to more casual users of the equipment. He provokes a fight with Michael Lee over use of the heavy bag when he is preapring for a fight but Cutty calmly breaks the pair up. Justin became more accepting of Michael over time and the two attended a professional boxing match along with Cutty.^[21]

[edit] Jamal

• Played by: Melvin T. Russell
• Appears in season 3: "Time After Time"; "All Due Respect"; "Dead Soldiers"; "Reformation" and "Mission Accomplished".

Jamal is a young drug dealer in Fruit's crew in Marlo Stanfield's organization. He is often seen with Justin. Jamal took part in the beating of Puddin as part of a turf war between Stanfield and the Barksdale organization. His role in the beating earned him the respect of Fruit. Justin and Jamal later discovered the body of Stanfield drug dealer LaTroy and the two fled the streets in fear of their own safety.^[21]

[edit] Old Face Andre

• Played by: Alfonso Christian Lover
• Appears in season 4: "Soft Eyes"; "Home Room"; "Refugees"; "Alliances".

Andre is a West side convenience store owner whose store serves as a stash house for Marlo Stanfield. He gets into Marlo's debt when the stash is robbed by Omar Little. Marlo is unforgiving and takes Andre's prized ring as a punishment. When Marlo is robbed by Omar himself (losing Andre's ring in the process), he includes Andre in his plan to get revenge on Omar. He has Chris Partlow stage a robbery of Andre's store and murder a visiting van driver and then has Andre identify Omar as responsible. When Omar is released and Marlo finds out about it, Marlo convinces Chris to find Andre only for Proposition Joe to hand him over to be killed. ^[27]

[edit] Chris Partlow

• Played by: Gbenga Akinnagbe
• Appears in:

Season 3: "Straight and True"; "Homecoming"; "Back Burners"; "Moral Midgetry"; "Reformation" and "Mission Accomplished".

Season 4: "Boys of Summer"; "Soft Eyes"; "Home Room"; "Refugees"; "Alliances"; "Margin of Error"; "Unto Others" (uncredited).

Partlow is Marlo Stanfield's friend,and the primary enforcer in his drug dealing operation. He was a key player in the turf war with the Barksdale organization and was always looking out for Stanfield's safety. He often met with Marlo and his advisor Vinson to discuss their strategy. Partlow's cautious observation revealed Avon Barksdale's car when he tried to set a trap for Stanfield. Partlow fired upon the car in a drive by shooting, wounding Avon and killing one of his soldiers. When Stringer Bell was murdered Partlow and Snoop were accredited responsibility and they did nothing to dispel rumours about their involvement. The turf war came to a close when Avon was arrested and Stanfield assumed control of most of the drug dealing in Western Baltimore.^[21]

Partlow carries out murders as Stanfield orders them. Working alongside young female soldier "Snoop" he disposes of bodies by opening up vacant buildings, covering the corpses in lye and sheeting and then nailing the buildings shut. When Stanfield dealer Fruit is killed Partlow advises restraint suggesting they kill the perpetrator instead of the whole of the independent drug dealing crew he works with. Marlo sees the sense in Chris' approach and gives him the go ahead to kill Fruits murderer, Lex. Chris arranges for Lex to be ambushed by paying one of his fellow drug dealers to tell him his girlfriend wants to meet him at night in a secluded spot. Once the trap is sprung Lex is disposed of in Chris' reliable way. Chris is also responsible for the murder of a security guard who talked back to Marlo. Rumours on the street tie Chris to several other murders including victims known as Pookie and Byron.

Partlow continues to be Marlo's key advisor. He tries to dissuade Marlo from playing at a high stakes card game where he is losing a lot of money. When the card game is robbed by Omar Little, Marlo asks Partlow for his input in dealing with Omar. Partlow suggests a more subtle approach than simply placing a bounty on Omar. They plan to stage a robbery of their associate Old Face Andre and blame the robbery on Omar, having Andre identify him. Partlow carries out the robbery himself and kills a delivery woman and beats Andre to lend credence to their scenario.

Marlo entrusts Partlow with cultivating new prospect Michael Lee. Michael is a middle school child who Marlo believes would make a good soldier. Partlow is responsible for intimidating Lex's superior Bodie Broadus into giving up his corner because Marlo notices that he has turned it into a successful location. Partlow forces Bodie to accept Marlo's package. He asks Bodie about Michael having noticed that he worked with him for a time. Partlow tracks Michael to his home and then approaches him when he is talking with friends in an alley. He offers him cash and promises of protection if he joins the organization but Michael tells him he has to care for his brother. Chris has taken Michael on as a protege, Chris seems to relate to Michael and decided to protect him and teach him the rules of the Drug Game.^[28]

[edit] Felicia "Snoop" Pearson

• Played by: Felicia Pearson
• Appears in

Season 3: "Back Burners"; "Moral Midgetry"; "Reformation" and "Mission Accomplished".

Season 4: "Boys of Summer"; "Soft Eyes"; "Home Room"; "Refugees"; "Alliances"; "Margin of Error"; "Unto Others" (uncredited).

Snoop is a young female soldier in Marlo Stanfield's drug dealing organization and was heavily involved in the turf war with the rival Barksdale organization. She was responsible for killing Barksdale soldier Rico in a drive by shooting on Poot Carr's corner. She also took part in Chris Partlow's efforts to foil an assassination attempt against Marlo.^[21] After Stringer Bell was killed, Snoop boasted that she and Partlow had murdered him.

In season four, she and Partlow continue to commit murders on behalf of Marlo, as well as disposing of the bodies by depositing them in abandoned buildings, covering them with lye and tarps, and boarding the buildings again. Snoop and Partlow were responsible for the murder of a security guard who made the mistake of talking back to Marlo. Snoop grew tired of always concealing her crimes and tried to keep the guard's badge as a souvenir. Partlow threw the badge away. The pair were also responsible for intimidating Bodie Broadus into accepting Marlo's package and for attempting to recruit middle school child Michael Lee into their organization.

According to a note in the major case unit's office in "The Boys of Summer", Snoop's real name is Felicia Pearson, which is also the name of the actress who plays her.^[21][29] "Snoop" is that actress's nickname in real life.^[30] Several critics have picked out Pearson's performance as frightening because she portrays a female youth who is also a cold hearted killer.^[31][32][33] Writer Stephen King called the character "perhaps the most terrifying female villain to ever appear in a television series."^[33]

[edit] "Monk" Metcalf

• Played by: Kwame Patterson
• Appears in:

Season 4: "Boys of Summer"; "Soft Eyes"; "Refugees"; "Alliances" (uncredited); "Margin of Error".

Monk is a Lieutenant in Marlo's Stanfield's organization. Marlo tasked Monk with handing out money to school children to enhance his reputation. Monk is also responsible for phone activity in the organization and often acts as a intermediary between Marlo and the rest of the organization. He also noticed the camera that the major crimes unit was using to spy on Marlo.

[edit] Vinson

• Played by: Norris Davis
• Appears in season 3: "Homecoming"; "Slapstick"; "Reformation" and "Mission Accomplished".

Vinson is an advisor to Gang Leader Marlo Stanfield. During season three, he gives Stanfield advice on how to deal with his rival Avon Barksdale when Avon is released from prison. He continues to counsel Stanfield once he becomes embroiled in a turf war with Barksdale. He also acts as a liaison between Stanfield and Proposition Joe as Joe attempts to negotiate an end to the turf war. It is Vinson who identifies Omar Little to Brother Mouzone on Mouzone's return to Baltimore seeking revenge. Vinson either owns or manages a rim shop and conducts his business related to "The Game" after hours. In season 4 Marlo continues to use Vinson's rim shop as a meeting place.^[21]

[edit] New Day Co-Op

[edit] Proposition Joe

Main article: Proposition Joe

Stewart is an Eastside drug kingpin who supplies much of Baltimore through his international connections and involvement in the new day co-op organization.

[edit] Slim Charles

• Played by: Anwan Glover
• Appears in

Season 3: "Time After Time"; "All Due Respect"; "Dead Soldiers"; "Amsterdam"; "Straight and True"; "Homecoming"; "Back Burners"; "Moral Midgetry"; "Slapstick"; "Reformation"; "Middle Ground" and "Mission Accomplished".

Season 4: "Boys of Summer"; "Home Room"; "Alliances"; "Unto Others" (uncredited).

Slim Charles became the Barksdale organization's chief enforcer while Stringer Bell ran things with Avon Barksdale in prison. He objected to Stringer putting product before territory after the loss of the high rise projects. When Avon was released Slim Charles was his chief enforcer in the war with Marlo Stanfield. Although Charles proved himself a capable soldier on many occasions the support he gathered around himself was often not up to the task.

Charles was pleased to work with Dennis "Cutty" Wise as he remembered his reputation as a soldier to be feared. Charles and Bodie Broadus organized a party to celebrate Cutty's return and all of the organization members present were seen taking drugs despite Avon's rules against this. Charles explained to Cutty that sometimes you have to break the rules. The two gelled well together co-ordinating and conducting assaults on Stanfield territory. However, they were let down by their driver Tater, who failed to follow their instructions in a co-ordinated assault and put himself, Gerard and Country in the line of fire. Country and Tater were killed and Slim Charles was forced to retreat.

Slim Charles and Cutty struck back alone to ensure that a better job was done. They attacked one of Marlo's crews and Charles killed a young drug dealer. Cutty allowed the crew chief, Fruit, to escape. Initially Charles thought that he had ruined Cutty's shot by firing too early himself. Cutty later admitted to Charles and Avon that he had been unable to take the shot and was retiring from his role. Charles and Avon agreed that Cutty was leaving "the game" with his reputation intact.

Slim Charles and Avon next oversaw an operation to assassinate Marlo. They tried to ensare him using a girl, Devonne, as bait. Stanfield realized that it was a trap, and had his soldier Chris Partlow attack Avon and Slim Charles while they waited. Avon was wounded and another soldier was killed but Charles escaped unharmed.

Slim Charles was responsible for consoling Avon after the death of Stringer Bell. When Avon told Charles that he had lost heart for the war and that Stanfield was not responsible for Bell's death, Charles reminded him that now that they were in a war, there was no way to back down.

Slim Charles saw another opportunity to kill Stanfield when he found him at Vinson's rimshop with only Partlow for protection. He phoned Avon who marshalled his soldiers to prepare their weapons. Avon's group were trapped in their base by a police raid and they were all arrested. When Avon failed to arrive Slim Charles decided that the opportunity to kill Marlo had been missed. He escaped arrest and prosecution at the close of season three because he wasn't at the house when Avon was arrested.^[21]

As Season 4 commenced, Slim supplies what remains of the Barksdale drug dealers with narcotics that they buy wholesale from Proposition Joe and his New Day Co-Op. Charles supplied Bodie and watched him build a successful operation, with their product as a firm foundation. Marlo also recognized Bodie's achievement and tried to take over his corner. Bodie came to Slim Charles to let him know and Charles advised him not to stand up to Stanfield. Charles raised the problem at the next meeting of the Co-Op but they decided to negotiate with Stanfield and focus on problems with an incursion of New York dealers on the East side. Charles was doubtful that Stanfield would talk to them based on the Barksdales' experience. During the meeting Charles explained to the Co-Op how Stanfield has been hiding corpses in vacant row houses. When Joe's first meeting failed to convince Marlo he has Charles approach Partlow to arrange a second sit down, which Charles also attended. As the season progresses it appears that Charles has become part of Proposition Joe's crew, implying that the Barksdale organization has been completely dissolved.^[34]

Anwan Glover is a real-life member of the Washington D.C. go-go outfit, The Backyard Band.

[edit] Melvin "Cheese" Wagstaff

• Played by: Method Man
• Appears in:

Season 2: "Undertow" and "Storm Warnings".

Season 3: "Time After Time" and "All Due Respect".

Season 4: "A New Day","That's Got His Own",& "Final Grades"

Eastside Crew Chief and Favorate Nephew of Proposition Joe. Cheese supplied Ziggy Sobotka with a package of narcotics to distribute and extorted money from him when he could not return its value. Cheese took Ziggy's car and torched it and threatened to kill him. Nick Sobotka and La La intervened on Ziggy's behalf but could only convince Cheese to give Ziggy more time. Cheese was forced to back down when Nick involved The Greeks (Proposition Joe's suppliers). Cheese was injured by Brother Mouzone when he moved into Barksdale territory following an agreement with Stringer Bell that Avon Barksdale was unaware of and did not honour.

Cheese was one of the major case unit's first targets as a route to Proposition Joe himself. However Cheese avoided their surveillance efforts through disciplined use of his subordinates to make phone calls and only discussing business face to face. Following the arrest of Lavelle Mann, Cheese was promoted to supplying other dealers.

Cheese kept a pet dog and participated in underground dog fights. When his dog lost a fight Cheese shot it rather than seek treatment for its injuries, feeling that the animal had let him down. Cheese's soldier Triage suggested that his opponent, a dealer named Dazz, may have cheated. Triage saw Dazz's dog being rubbed with a red rag by Dazz's man Jelly. Triage responded by killing Jelly which triggered a short war between the rival crews and a further two deaths. Cell phone talk about the war was picked up by the major case unit and they arrested Jelly and Triage preparing for another assault. The unit had Cheese on tape talking about shooting his dog and mistakenly believed it was evidence that he was responsible for one of the murders. They told Cheese about the wiretaps when trying to force a confession. Once the unit realized Cheese was talking about an animal he was released. Cheese passed the intelligence about the wiretap up to his uncle which allowed him to escape further investigation.

In Season 4, Cheese is not seen much but remains a trusted member of Proposition Joe's crew. It is not yet known whether Cheese is Randy Wagstaff's biological father.<^[11]

[edit] East Side

[edit] Frog

• Played by: Gary "D.Reign" Senkus
• Appears in season 2: "Undertow"; "Backwash" and "Port in a Storm" (uncredited).

Frog is a white street-level dealer whose allegiances are never made clear. He is seen early in season two distributing a package for Ziggy Sobotka (and stealing from him in the process), and later negotiates with Nick Sobotka to distribute another. During the early stages of season two's investigation, he sells heroin to Thomas "Herc" Hauk and is photographed by Kima Greggs and Ellis Carver.

[edit] "White" Mike McArdle

• Played by: Brook Yeaton
• Appears in season 2: "Collateral Damage"; "Bad Dreams" and "Port in a Storm" (Uncredited).

White Mike is a mid-level East side drug dealer with his own territory. He supplied Ziggy Sobotka with packages of narcotics to distribute but their relationship soured when Ziggy failed to make adequate profit from the package.^[35] McArdle was supplied by The Greek's smuggling operation and was arrested as part of an investigation into that operation. He was quick to turn against his suppliers and gave up all the information he had.^[36]

Brook Yeaton is also an on set dresser for the show.^[37]

[edit] Others

[edit] Bubbles

Main article: Bubbles (The Wire)

Bubbles is a homeless heroin addict with a vast knowledge of surviving on the streets of Baltimore.

[edit] Brother Mouzone

• Played by: Michael Potts
• Appears in:

Season 2: "Stray Rounds"; "Storm Warnings"; "Bad Dreams" and "Port in a Storm".

Season 3: "Reformation"; "Middle Ground" and "Mission Accomplished".

Brother Mouzone is hired muscle and a hitman from New York. In season 2, Avon Barksdale hired him to protect the Barksdale turf and their drug operation from Proposition Joe's dealers. These dealers were working at the Barksdale towers as part of a secret agreement between Stringer Bell and Proposition Joe. Mouzone bought a team of soldiers with him including his ever present bodyguard Lamar. Mouzone did not fit the usual picture of a hitman, always wearing a suit, bowtie, and glasses, speaking politely, and reading magazines such as Harper's and The Nation. Nonetheless, he was extremely effective; soon after his arrival at the Barksdale towers, he had intimidated Proposition Joe's dealers to the point where all he had to do to keep them off was sit on a nearby bench and read his magazines. He achieved this by shooting the dealers leader Melvin "Cheese" Wagstaff with a non-lethal round and forcing him to back down. In order to maintain his alliance with Proposition Joe, Stringer duped Omar Little into shooting Mouzone. However, Omar realized he had been had, and let Mouzone live. When Stringer visited him at the hospital, Mouzone informed him that their agreement was "absolved", then returned to New York.

In season 3, Mouzone returned to Baltimore to search for Omar. He located Omar's boyfriend Dante with advice from Baltimore local Vinson. Mouzone beat Dante until he revealed Omar's whereabouts. Mouzone left Lamar in charge of Dante and went out in search of Omar. After he tracked Omar down he suggested that they team up to kill Stringer Bell. Avon gave Mouzone a time and a place to find Stringer realizing it was the only way to satisfy Mouzone. Omar and Mouzone planned an ambush and trapped Stringer in his property development site. They killed him together. Before returning to New York Mouzone released Dante and gave Omar his weapon to dispose of.^[21][38]

[edit] The Deacon

• Played by: Melvin Williams
• Appears in

Season 3: "All Due Respect"; "Straight and True"; "Back Burners"; "Moral Midgetry"; "Slapstick"; "Reformation";

Season 4: "Home Room" and "Margin of Error".

The Deacon is a West Side church figure who is involved in many community projects. He also has many contacts within the city’s academic population. He is a friend of teacher Grace Sampson and helps her ex-boyfriend Dennis "Cutty" Wise when he is released after a long prison sentence. Initially he tries to encourage Cutty to enroll in a GED program, but Cutty is not interested in this idea. The deacon then helps Cutty to open a community boxing gym. He puts Cutty in touch with State Delegate Odell Watkins through the politically influential Reverend Frank Reid to help with obtaining the necessary permits for the gym. He also helps Cutty to get a paying job working as a school custodian at Edward Tilghman Middle, where Grace teaches the eighth grade.

The Deacon is also friends with Howard "Bunny" Colvin. When Colvin was Western District police commander the Deacon often served as his conscience. Colvin started three drug tolerant zones in his district and the deacon was dismayed at the poor conditions addicts faced in these areas and convinced Colvin to involve public health academics in providing services for the addicts now he had gathered them into an easy to reach area. Colvin was forced to retire because of his actions and the deacon found him a new job working with a sociologist in studying the prevention of repeat violent offender behaviour.

In his youth Melvin Williams, the actor who plays the Deacon, was a real-life drug dealer who was busted by series writer Ed Burns when he was a Baltimore city police officer.

[edit] Kenard

• Played by: Thuliso Dingwall
• Appears in season 4: "Boys of Summer"; "Alliances"; "Margin of Error"; "Unto Others".

Kenard is a younger member of Namond Brice's circle of friends from Edward Tilghman middle school. Kenard lives alone on the streets of Baltimore. He is also friends with Donut. He works with Donut and Randy Wagstaff delivering flyers on election day. He also works with Namond, Donut and Byron selling drugs. Despite being the youngest of his friends he is consistently the most profane. After attempting to steal from Namond, he is savagely beaten by Michael. However, in the Season 4 finale, Kenard is seen working Michael's new corner with Dukie. He (Kenard) approached Prez, who was watching Dukie from afar, for a drug purchase. ^[39]

[edit] Lamar

• Played by: DeAndre McCullough
• Appears in:

Season 2: "Storm Warnings" (uncredited); "Bad Dreams" (uncredited) and "Port in a Storm" (uncredited).

Season 3: "Reformation" and "Mission Accomplished".

Lamar is the assistant and inept bodyguard of New York mercenary Brother Mouzone. He has accompanied Mouzone on both his visits to Baltimore. On their first trip they worked at the Franklin Terrace high rises for Avon Barksdale – guarding his territory against East Side drug dealers. Lamar failed protect his charge against Omar Little on this trip. He was distracted by a dog and knocked unconscious by Omar’s associates while guarding a motel room door. His failure allowed Omar to enter the room and shoot Brother Mouzone.

Brother Mouzone recovered and returned to Baltimore for revenge. He had Lamar seek out Omar in various gay bars having learned that he was homosexual. Lamar resented the task and his visceral homophobia made him confrontational with those he came across while searching for Omar. Eventually Lamar was approached by Omar’s boyfriend Dante allowing Mouzone to capture him and find Omar.

DeAndre McCullough, the actor who plays Lamar, was the basis of a character in David Simon's The Corner.^[23]

[edit] Squeak

• Played by: Mia Arnice Chambers
• Appears in season 3: "Back Burners"; "Moral Midgetry"; "Slapstick"; "Reformation" and "Mission Accomplished".

Squeak is the girlfriend of Bernard, a soldier in the Barksdale organization. Bernard was responsible for supplying the organization with disposable mobile phones and was told to buy no more than two phones at any one outlet and provide receipts for his purchases. Squeak's nagging convinced Bernard to start breaking these rules.

Squeak was an old associate of Bubbles and their association allowed the police to use her as an inroad to the Barksdale organization. Bubbles put Squeak and Bernard in touch with Lester Freamon who was a posing as a conman who could provide them with the phones at lower price. With Squeak's encouragement, Bernard accepted Freamon's offer and began buying solely from him on the condition that he provide him with receipts. Freamon gave Bernard pre-wiretapped phones that eventually brought down the Barksdale organization. When the investigation was closed with the arrest of Avon Barksdale Bernard and Squeak were also brought in. Bernard joked that he could not wait to go to jail to get away from Squeak.

[edit] Sherrod

• Played by: Rashad Orange
• Appears in season 4: "Soft Eyes"; "Refugees"; "Alliances".

Sherrod is a young homeless boy who is befriended by Bubbles. Sherrod has been living on the streets since his mother succumbed to drug addiction. He last attended school in the fifth grade at Steuart Hill elementary. Bubbles tries to train Sherrod to run his own business but when he finds his math skills lacking he insists that he return to school. Bubbles visits Edward Tilghman middle school with Sherrod and convinces the Assistant Principal, Marcia Donnelly, to take him in. Sherrod attends classes sporadically and tries to fake doing homework by bringing books from school back to the squat he shares with Bubbles. When Bubbles finds Sherrod dealing drugs on a corner he tries to talk to him and is beaten by an addict seeking money. Bubbles then tells Sherrod that he cannot stay with him any more.^[40]

[edit] Walon

• Played by: Steve Earle
• Appears in season 1: "One Arrest"; "Game Day" and "The Cost".

Season 4: "Final Grades"

Walon is a recovering drug addict who Bubbles and Johnny meet at a narcotics anonymous meeting. They see Walon again in the projects trying to get his nephew to give up drugs. Bubbles' conversations with Walon help him realise that he wants to get clean and once he does Walon gives him some advice on keeping clean. Walon is played by singer/songwriter and recovering addict Steve Earle.

[edit] Johnny Weeks

• Played by: Leo Fitzpatrick
• Appears in:

Season 1: "The Target"; "The Pager"; "One Arrest"; "Game Day" and "Sentencing".

Season 2: "Hard Cases" and "Port in a Storm".

Season 3: "Time After Time"; "Dead Soldiers"; "Straight and True"; "Back Burners"; "Middle Ground" and "Mission Accomplished".

In season 1 Johnny is Bubbles' best friend and a drug addict with notoriously bad luck. In the pilot episode he is beaten nearly to death by Bodie Broadus, Poot Carr and other dealers after trying to pass counterfeit money to D'Angelo Barksdale's operation; this spurs Bubbles to become a police informant.

While in the hospital for that beating, Johnny discovers he is HIV positive. In the season three finale he dies from an overdose and his partially rat-eaten body is discovered in a vacant house in the "Hamsterdam" free zone that Major Colvin had set up.^[41]

Johnny is based on a young white homeless addict that David Simon met while researching The Corner, this man would follow Simon's subject, drug addict Gary McCullough, around.^[13]

[edit] School system

[edit] Namond Brice

Main article: Namond Brice

Namond Brice is a tough-talking eighth-grade student who struggles to follow in the footsteps of his father, Wee-Bey.

[edit] Howard "Bunny" Colvin

Main article: Howard "Bunny" Colvin

Colvin was a thirty-year veteran of the Baltimore Police Department and a district commander before his radical policies caused his forced retirement. He moved into working with potential repeat violent offenders in the school system.

[edit] Zenobia Dawson

• Played by: Taylor King
• Appears in season 4: "Alliances"; "Margin of Error" (uncredited); "Unto Others".

Zenobia is a student at Edward Tilghman middle school who often disrupts classes, in particular she is disruptive in Mr. Prezbo’s math class. She is one of the children selected for the special class by Assistant Principal Marcia Donnelly.

[edit] Marcia Donnelly

• Played by: Tootsie Duvall
• Appears in season 4: "Boys of Summer"; "Soft Eyes"; "Home Room"; "Refugees"; "Alliances"; "Margin of Error"; "Unto Others".

Marcia Donnelly is the Assistant Principal of Edward J. Tilghman Middle School. She is an efficient disciplinarian whom the students have learned to obey. A veteran administrator, Mrs. Donnelly has become used to the chaotic environment of the school, but she still feels frustrated with the difficulty of keeping order among the children and retaining teachers from year to year. Donnelly is world-weary to the point where she sees an in-school stabbing victim being HIV-negative as a silver lining. She performs sweeps of the school grounds looking for concealed weapons on a regular basis.

Donnelly employs Dennis "Cutty" Wise — ostensibly as a custodian — to perform the duties of a truant officer. By forcing truants to attend one day in September and another in October, the school secures more funding. Cutty eventually returns to her to resign the post because he expected to be doing something more rewarding. She works with Howard "Bunny" Colvin in setting up an initiative to separate students into two groups to improve discipline. She urges Colvin to protect Principal Withers from the consequences of dividing the students, because he has gone out on a limb to support the initiative. She selects the students for the program with input from her colleague Grace Sampson.

Donnelly meets with Bubbles and allows his young assistant Sherrod to enroll in the school. She insists that Sherrod is socially promoted to the eighth grade because of his age. She tells Bubbles that he cannot be allowed to return to the last grade he attended because of the difficulties it would present regarding classroom discipline and funding. She is supportive of impoverished student Duquan "Dukie" Weems and sends clothes home for him via his classmate Crystal Judkins.

Donnelly convinces eighth grade student Randy Wagstaff to become an informant against other students by threatening to call his foster mother when he is caught with a fake hall pass. When Randy is later involved as a lookout in a possible rape on school grounds Donnelly is forced to suspend him. He tells her that he knows about a murder to try and convince her not to call his foster mother and Donnelly is forced to hand him over to the police department.

Donnelly has a relationship based on mutual respect with the Principal, Claudell Withers. He allows her to handle the operational aspects of running the school while he deals more with external interests like the education board and the parents. Donnelly tries to protect the school from being taken over by the state by focusing on improving performance in state assessments. She insists on her teachers sticking to core subjects and is against deviations from the curriculum. She tries to guide trainee teacher Roland "Prez" Pryzbylewski into following this strategy.^[15]

[edit] Donut

• Played by: Nathan Corbett
• Appears in season 4: "Boys of Summer", "Soft Eyes"; "Alliances"; "Margin of Error"; "Unto Others".

Donut is a sixth grade student at Edward Tilghman Middle School. He is interested in cars and is an accomplished auto thief. He is friends with Namond Brice, Michael Lee and Randy Wagstaff. He brings Sergeant Ellis Carver's attention to the group when he is spotted in a stolen four by four. Carver warns the boys that if he ties them to any further auto thefts he will organize alleyway beatings for each of them. Donut remains defiant, quietly remarking that Carver has a nice car as he walks away. Donut breaks into math teacher Roland "Prez" Pryzbylewski's car when he locks his keys in it. When Randy is unexpectedly tasked with distributing Carcetti campaign literature on the day of the primary election, Donut steals an SUV to make the job go faster. Once Donut learns that Randy has already been paid upfront, he asks for his share of the "walk-around" money and leaves. Donut works with Namond and their even younger friend Kenard selling drugs around their school hours. Donut's carjacking abilities however get him into trouble with Corrupt patrolmen Walker who breaks his fingers for no other reason than giving him additional paperwork to do on his shift.^[42]

[edit] Crystal Judkins

• Played by: Destiny Jackson-Evans
• Appears in season 4: "Soft Eyes"; "Home Room" (uncredited); "Refugees" (uncredited) and "Alliances" (uncredited).

Crystal is a keen student at Edward Tilghman middle school and often helps her teachers outside of school. She works with assistant principal Marcia Donnelly over the summer to prepare the school for the new year. She delivers clothes to her impoverished peer Duquan "Dukie" Weems on Donnelly’s behalf. She is in Roland "Prez" Pryzbylewski's math class with Dukie and advises Prez about Dukie's home circumstances. When a girl is wounded in a fight in Prez's classroom Mrs Sampson sends Crystal to the office to call an ambulance.

[edit] Michael Lee

Main article: Michael Lee (The Wire)

Michael Lee is a soft-spoken middle school pupil who is mostly unresponsive to authority figures.

[edit] David Parenti

• Played by: Dan DeLuca
• Appears in season 4: "Home Room"; "Refugees"; "Alliances"; "Margin of Error" (uncredited); "Unto Others".

Dr. David Parenti is a professor of sociology at the University of Maryland with a special interest in repeat violent offenders. He receives a grant from the university for a pilot study aimed at reducing this behaviour. He plans to target 18-21 year olds as this is the age group when the behaviour is most commonly exhibited.

He is known to the West Baltimore church deacon who puts him in touch with retired police officer Howard "Bunny" Colvin. Parenti is interested in meeting Colvin because he is well known around campus for his last action in the police department – a program of drug tolerant zones that significantly reduced crime in his district. Colvin takes a salaried position to assist Parenti with his study. Colvin convinces Parenti to target younger age groups by showing him that violent behaviour is entrenched in 18-21 year olds through a visit to his old district.

Colvin and Parenti decide to focus on eighth grade middle school children and approach the Edward Tilghman middle school with their program. The principal, Claudell Withers, agrees to let them separate children with behavioural difficulties into their own class where they can be targeted and studied. Parenti also gets approval from the education department on Baltimore’s East Avenue on the condition that his program does not make any headlines.

With the assistance of eighth grade head teacher Grace Sampson and assistant principal Marcia Donnelly he selects a class of ten students. Colvin refers to their target group as "corner kids". They hire a class teacher and assistant to deal with the students. Parenti is fasciniated by the behaviour exhibited by his students. ^[43]

[edit] Roland "Prez" Pryzbylewski

Main article: Roland "Prez" Pryzbylewski

Prez is an ex-detective who showed great aptitude for surveillance and wiretap cases but struggled to maintain his composure in the field. He has embarked on a new career as a middle school math teacher.

[edit] Grace Sampson

• Played by: Dravon James
• Appears in

Season 3: "Dead Soldiers" and "Mission Accomplished".

Season 4: "Soft Eyes"; "Home Room"; "Refugees"; "Alliances"; "Margin of Error"; "Unto Others".

Sampson is a senior middle school English teacher and is the head teacher for the eighth grade at the Edward Tilghman Middle School. Grace has son named Allen, after the boys father. She had a relationship with Dennis "Cutty" Wise before he was sentenced to a long prison term. When he was released from prison he tracked Grace down and learned where she was working. She avoids reconnecting with Cutty but offers him help in the form of putting him in touch with her church deacon to help him find work. Cutty visits Grace again when he has established a boxing gym for local kids. She rebuffs his advances again and tells him that she is proud of him. Grace's sister Queenie is a drug addict and is envious of the way her sister has taken control of her life.

Grace is feared and respected by her students who know her as Mrs. Sampson. She is able to subdue a classroom quickly and commands the attention of children easily. As head of the eighth grade she encourages her teachers to use simple consistent rules in the classroom to make it easy for the students to comply. She is supportive of new teacher Roland "Prez" Pryzbylewski and helps him with discipline problems in his classes when she can. When a student named Chiquan is attacked by a classmate wielding a boxcutter in Pryzbylewski's class it is Grace who steps in and slaps the violent student to disarm her. She comforts the injured girl and asks a responsible student, Crystal Judkins, to phone for an ambulance.

Grace works with Howard "Bunny" Colvin to establish separate classes for two groups of eighth graders that he terms "corner kids" and "stoop kids". By separating the problem "corner kids" from classes he hopes that he can address their specific needs and give the other students more time to learn. Grace helps him to identify children who might be considered "corner kids". She suggests Namond Brice. She works alongside Assistant Principal Marcia Donnelly to select another nine students for the class.

Grace sees Cutty once more when he is working as a custodian bringing truanting children into the school. This time both of them are content to leave their relationship in the past.

Actress Dravon James portrays both Grace and her sister Queenie.^[44]

[edit] Albert Stokes

• Played by: Unknown
• Appears in season 4: "Home Room"; "Refugees"; "Alliances"; "Margin of Error".

Albert is a student at Edward Tilghman middle school who often uses profane language and disrupts classes. He is one of the children selected for the special class by Assistant Principal Marcia Donnelly.

[edit] Darnell Tyson

• Played by: Davone Cooper
• Appears in season 4: "Home Room"; "Refugees"; "Margin of Error" and "Unto Others".

Darnell is a student at Edward Tilghman middle school who has a drinking problem and often disrupts classes. He is one of the children selected for the special class by Assistant Principal Marcia Donnelly.

[edit] Randy Wagstaff

Main article: Randy Wagstaff

Randy Wagstaff is an enterprising eighth-grade student who is dependent on social services.

[edit] Duquan "Dukie" Weems

Main article: Duquan "Dukie" Weems

Duquan "Dukie" Weems is an intelligent eighth-grade student who lives in abject poverty.

[edit] Karim Williams

• Played by: Jeffrey Lorenzo
• Appears in season 4: "Home Room" (uncredited); "Refugees" (uncredited); "Alliances" (uncredited) and "Margin of Error" (uncredited).

Karim is a student at Edward Tilghman middle school who hopes to become an NBA basketball player and sports an afro. He is in Roland "Prez" Pryzbylewski’s math class with his friends Randy Wagstaff and Namond Brice.

[edit] Dennis "Cutty" Wise

Main article: Dennis "Cutty" Wise

Wise is a reformed criminal who is trying to build a community boxing centre and also works as a school custodian.

[edit] Claudell Withers

• Played by: Richard Hildebird
• Appears in season 4: "Boys of Summer"; "Refugees"; "Alliances" (uncredited).

Withers is the principal of East Tilghman middle school and has held the post for eleven years. He is regarded as something of a renegade. He entrusts much of the operation of the school to Assistant Principal Marcia Donnelly. Withers goes out on a limb to allow Dr. David Parenti and Howard "Bunny" Colvin to launch a controversial pilot study at his school. Withers holds the education department’s adimistrators in low regard and refers to their headquarters on North Avenue as the puzzle palace. ^[45]

[edit] The Docks

[edit] Sobotka family

[edit] Frank Sobotka

Main article: Frank Sobotka

Frank Sobotka was a respected longshoremen's local union leader who became involved with an organized crime smuggling operation in order to finance a political campaign to sustain the docks.

[edit] Joan Sobotka

• Played by: Elisabeth Noone
• Appears in season 2: "Ebb Tide" and "Hard Cases".

Joan is Louis' wife and the two live with their grown son, Nick. Joan bemoans her families drinking habits and tries to encourage Nick to get as much work as possible at the port. She refuses to make breakfast for him if he is not up in time for work. Nick often has his girlfriend Aimee to stay but hides her visits from his parents. Louis is aghast when the police serve warrants and search her home looking for Nick and find drugs and cash.

[edit] Louis Sobotka

• Played by: Robert J. Hogan
• Appears in season 2: "Hard Cases"; "Duck and Cover"; "Bad Dreams" and "Port in a Storm".

Louis is Frank Sobotka's elder brother and Nick's father. Louis was forced to retire early from his trade as a shipwright. He spends his days hypothetically gambling on horses (he never places any money on his bets) and drinking at Delores' bar. He refuses to get involved in the family's smuggling operation. When a warrant is put on Nick for his drug involvement Louis convinces him to turn himself in.

[edit] Nick Sobotka

Main article: Nick Sobotka

A well liked young Stevedore with extensive family connections to the Baltimore port and links to the criminal underworld.

[edit] Ziggy Sobotka

Main article: Ziggy Sobotka

Ziggy is an impulsive and often reckless young checker at the docks with a desire to prove himself and a respected father to live up to.

[edit] Dock workers

[edit] Big Roy

• Played by: Doug Lory
• Appears in season 2: "Ebb Tide"; "Bad Dreams" and "Port in a Storm" (uncredited).

Big Roy is a ponytailed white stevedore who is much smaller than his colleague Little Big Roy. Little Big Roy was part of the crowd of Stevedores that witnessed their murdered union leader Frank Sobotka being pulled from the docks.

[edit] Chess

• Played by: J. Valenteen Gregg
• Appears in season 2: "Ebb Tide"; "Duck and Cover"; "All Prologue" (uncredited) and "Port in a Storm" (uncredited).

Chess is a slight, senior, African American stevedore who is often seen drinking at Delores' bar. He questions Frank Sobotka about the source of his political capital at a union meeting.

[edit] Nat Coxson

• Played by: Luray Cooper
• Appears in season 2: "Ebb Tide"; "Collateral Damage"; "Hot Shots"; "Undertow"; "All Prologue"; "Backwash"; "Stray Rounds"; "Storm Warnings"; and "Port in a Storm".

Nat is a bald headed African American stevedore who is a union president and is dubious of Frank Sobotka's political maneuvering. Nat is a firm believer that the unions should focus on repairing the disused grain pier before it is bought by property developers. He opposes Frank's efforts to have the canal dredged as he believes that this is a goal beyond their reach. Nat is concerned about Frank's surge in income and spending on campaign contributions and hiring a lobbyist. He questions Frank about the source of the funds and when Frank refuses to answer Nat cautions him about the risks of showing so much money.

Nat is an advocate for Ott in the forthcoming union election. He expects Frank to stand down to let Ott take his place as the unions have an arrangement that Polish and African American leaders will alternate. Frank asks Nat to allow him to continue for a second term to try and achieve his political goals and Nat is dubious. When Frank is murdered Nat is horrified along with the other Stevedores. Nat's worst fears are realized when the grain pier is converted into condominiums.

[edit] La La

• Played by: Kelvin Davis
• Appears in season 2: "Ebb Tide" (uncredited); "Backwash"; "Duck and Cover"; "Stray Rounds" and "Port in a Storm".

Bald African American stevedore from Frank Sobotka's union. La La has little superiority amongst union men and therefore struggles to find work. When Frank got into a feud with South Eastern police district commander Major Valchek La La was arrested on a DWI stop when leaving Delores' bar along with several other union members. He is a friend of Nick Sobotka and accompanied him to try and talk a drug dealer called "Cheese" into giving back their friend Ziggy's car.

[edit] Little Big Roy

• Played by: Richard Pelzman
• Appears in season 2: "Ebb Tide"; "Backwash" (uncredited); "Duck and Cover"; "Bad Dreams" and "Port in a Storm" (uncredited).

Little Big Roy is a large, balding, Polish crew chief from Nat Coxson's IBS longshoremen's union. He is often seen drinking in Delores' bar with other union members. Frank Sobotka borrowed Little Big Roy's union card in order to work a ship to clear his head after he was arrested. When Frank's body was pulled out of the docks Little Big Roy was there to watch with the other devastated Stevedores.

[edit] Maui

• Played by: Lance Irwin
• Appears in season 2: "Hard Cases"; "Undertow"; "Backwash"; "Duck and Cover" and "Port in a Storm".

Maui is a checker from Frank Sobotka's union who had a relationship with Officer Beadie Russell. Beadie reconnected with Maui to get information about smuggling from the docks; he refused to inform on his fellow union men but told her to check the port's computer system for information. Maui had a long running feud with Ziggy Sobotka that ended with Maui humiliating Ziggy by forcing him on top of a container and stranding him there.

[edit] Vernon "Ott" Motley

• Played by: Bus Howard
• Appears in season 2: "Ebb Tide"; "Collateral Damage"; "Duck and Cover"; "Stray Rounds" and "Port in a Storm".

Moustached older African American stevedore from Frank Sobotka's checkers union. Often seen drinking in Delores' bar. Ott was arrested on a DWI charge as part of Major Valchek's vendetta against the union. He was released on bail later the same day. Frank's response was to have Thomas "Horseface" Pakusa steal a surveillance van from Valchek's district parking lot; Ott helped to load the van into a container to be shipped around the country.

Ott was set to take over from Frank as union leader when the next election came around as per the Stevedores arrangement that the position swap between a Polish and African American president after each term. Ott was supported by his friend Nat Coxson, president of another local union. Ott realized that Frank planned to run again and was angry that he was not honouring the agreement. When Frank was murdered Ott withdrew his candidacy to show support for him.

[edit] Thomas "Horseface" Pakusa

• Played by: Charley Scalies
• Appears in season 2: "Ebb Tide"; "Collateral Damage"; "Hot Shots"; "Hard Cases"; "Undertow"; "All Prologue"; "Backwash"; "Duck and Cover"; "Stray Rounds"; "Storm Warnings"; "Bad Dreams" and "Port in a Storm".

Checker from Frank Sobotka's union who assists him in moving contraband through the port. Horse was responsible for stealing Valchek's surveillance van in the unions feud with the police major. Horse was arrested and put on trial following the details investigation of smuggling through the Baltimore docks although the outcome of his trial was not shown.^[46]

[edit] Johnny "Fifty" Spamanto

• Played by: Jeffrey Pratt Gordon
• Appears in season 2: "Ebb Tide"; "Collateral Damage"; "Hot Shots"; "Hard Cases"; "Undertow"; "All Prologue"; "Backwash"; "Duck and Cover"; "Stray Rounds"; "Storm Warnings"; "Bad Dreams" and "Port in a Storm".

Spamanto is a young checker from Frank Sobotka's union. Spamanto is caucasian and wears a long beard. He received his nickname for drinking over fifty beers on his 25th birthday and is often seen drinking in Delore's bar. Spamanto assists Nick and Ziggy in stealing from the docks for The Greeks. He refuses to get involved in the drug trade with Nick and Ziggy. Spamanto was indicted by a grand jury as part of the investigation in to smuggling at the docks but gave very little information and escaped uncharged.

[edit] The Greeks

[edit] Eton Ben-Eleazer

• Played by: Lev Goren
• Appears in season 2: "All Prologue"; "Stray Rounds"; "Storm Warnings"; "Bad Dreams" and "Port in a Storm".

Eton ran The Greeks' drug operations in Baltimore and supplied narctoics to Proposition Joe, "White" Mike McArdle and Petey Dixon. Eton was Israeli rather than Greek. He was arrested and put on trial following the detail's investigation of smuggling through the Baltimore docks, although the outcome of his trial was not shown.

[edit] George "Double G" Glekas

• Played by: Ted Feldman
• Appears in season 2: "Ebb Tide"; "Hard Cases"; "Duck and Cover"; "Stray Rounds" and "Storm Warnings".

Glekas runs a warehouse and appliance store for The Greeks under the name Pyramid Industries. The company was used as a front to move their stolen goods from the docks. Glekas was shot and killed by Ziggy Sobotka in a dispute over payment for stolen cars. Ziggy confessed to the murder and was shown serving time for the crime.

[edit] Koutris

• Played by: Tom Mardirosian
• Appears in season 2: "Stray Rounds"; "Storm Warnings" and "Bad Dreams".

Koutris is a corrupt FBI agent who feeds information on the bureau’s activity to The Greek. He was responsible for telling The Greek about an investigation by Baltimore police and the local FBI and gave The Greek warning enough to temporarily shut down his smuggling operation. He was rewarded with information on a large shipment of drugs that he seized on the FBI’s behalf. Koutris was also responsible for telling The Greek that his contact in the Baltimore port, Frank Sobotka, had agreed to give evidence against him. This information led to Sobotka’s death. When FBI Agent Terrence "Fitz" Fitzhugh realized that there may have been a leak within the bureau he sought out Koutris and learned that he had been reassigned a year ago from the branch where Fitz had recently contacted him.

[edit] Sergei "Serge" Malatov

• Played by: Chris Ashworth
• Appears in season 2: "Ebb Tide"; "Collateral Damage"; "Hot Shots"; "Hard Cases"; "Undertow"; "All Prologue"; "Backwash"; "Duck and Cover"; "Stray Rounds"; "Storm Warnings"; "Bad Dreams" and "Port in a Storm".

Serge acts as a driver and muscle for The Greek. Sergei was Ukrainian although people often assumed he was Russian and many called him Boris. He was responsible for picking up containers of stolen goods from the port and taking them to The Greek's front warehouse. Sergei was supposed to collect a container carrying prostitutes but when the Greek's crewman on board the ship that delivered the cargo failed to signal him he abandoned the container. The Greeks later learned that the girls had all suffocated and Sergei was sent to the ships next destination to find the crewman. He used fake ID to infiltrate the Philadelphia port and captured and interrogated the crewman but was unable to extract any useful information. When The Greek and Spiros Vondas arrived the crewman told them everything about how the girls were killed and Spiros murdered him. Sergei was charged with disposing of the body and The Greek instructed him to make sure there was no face or fingerprints.

Sergei held the respect of drug kingpin Proposition Joe. He intervened on behalf of Ziggy Sobotka when he got into debt with Proposition Joe's people because of The Greeks ties to the Sobotka family.

Sergei was convinced to inform on The Greek when security camera footage of him assaulting and abducting the crewman was discovered by a police detail investigating the deaths of the girls.^[47]

An ongoing joke with the Sergei character involved how he hated being called by the nickname "Boris."

[edit] Spiros Vondas

Main article: Spiros Vondas

The overseer of an international smuggling organization.

[edit] The Greek

Main article: The Greek (The Wire)

The operator of an international smuggling organization who shrewdly avoids any police investigation and always puts business first.

[edit] Others

[edit] Aimee

• Played by: Kristin Proctor
• Appears in season 2: "Hot Shots"; "Hard Cases"; "Undertow"; "Backwash"; "Storm Warnings" and "Port in a Storm".

Aimee is Nick Sobotka's girlfriend and the mother of his daughter, Ashley. Aimee could not stay overnight at Nick's home because he still lived with his parents. Aimee hopes to get a place for her young family to share and encourages Nick to go house hunting with her despite his lack of income from his dock work. She is shocked when she discovers a bundle of cash in his basement room, but he explains it by telling her that it comes from a new warehouse manager position. Aimee was at Nick's home when the police raided it and found a stash of heroin. She accepted his misdeeds and went into protective custody with him; the two finally sharing a home for a night.

[edit] Delores

• Played by: Jill Redding
• Appears in season 2: "Ebb Tide"; "Collateral Damage"; "Hot Shots"; "Hard Cases" and "Undertow."

Delores is the owner of the bar frequented by the Stevedores. She has a great respect for union leader Frank Sobotka and holds cash to be handed to workers in his union who are struggling for money on his behalf. She has an uneasy friendship with Ziggy Sobotka because he is constantly exposing his genatalia in her bar.

[edit] Bruce DiBiago

• Played by: Keith Flippen
• Appears in season 2: "Hot Shots"; "Backwash" and "Bad Dreams".

DiBiago is Frank Sobotka's lobbyist with heavy political contacts.

[edit] References

The Wire
Episodes | Season 1 | Season 2 | Season 3 | Season 4
Characters
Police:	Jimmy McNulty	Kima Greggs	Bunk Moreland	Lester Freamon	Ellis Carver	Herc Hauk
Command:	Ervin Burrell	William Rawls	Cedric Daniels	Jay Landsman	Stanislaus Valchek	Raymond Foerster
School:	Roland Pryzbylewski	Howard Colvin	Namond Brice	Michael Lee	Randy Wagstaff	Duquan Weems
Street:	Omar Little	Bubbles	Wee-Bey Brice	Dennis Wise	Chris Partlow	Snoop
Kingpins:	Avon Barksdale	Stringer Bell	Marlo Stanfield	Proposition Joe	The Greek	Slim Charles
Dealers:	Bodie Broadus	D'Angelo Barksdale	Poot Carr	Wallace	Cheese	Donut
Politics:	Tommy Carcetti	Clarence Royce	Rhonda Pearlman	Clay Davis	Norman Wilson	Coleman Parker
Docks:	Frank Sobotka	Nick Sobotka	Ziggy Sobotka	Spiros Vondas	Sergei Malatov	Beadie Russell