In the CSI continuum, Caine is a day shift supervisor at the Miami-Dade crime lab, a forensic analyst and former homicide detective and bomb squad officer (his forensic specialty is arson and explosion evidence). He is very protective of his team, who affectionately call him "H". He is very concerned about the reputation of his lab, and takes great care to keep them clean, likely because of his experience with his tarnished younger brother, Ray. When his staff fall under suspicion in several episodes ("One of Our Own", "Internal Affairs"), he immediately jumps in their defense, especially from IA investigator Rick Stetler, and tries his best to prove their innocence.

Unlike his counterpart in Las Vegas, now former CSI Supervisor Gil Grissom (CSI: Crime Scene Investigation), he is a sworn police officer, and thus carries a badge and gun. A superb marksman, Caine doesn't hesitate to use deadly force when the situation calls for it. He is also an ardent advocate of the death penalty for particularly heinous crimes, and doesn't think twice about threatening suspects with it in such cases. He is also known to reserve a special wrath for those who would dare to harm children. Caine is truly color blind, treating all victims and their families equally, regardless of their ethnicity, background, or other circumstances, and often goes out of his way to ensure they are alright, frequently giving his number to them, stating that he is available day or night to take their call. Despite being a civil servant on a county wage, he has helped others financially with such expensive things as providing private funeral arrangements for an indigent murder victim named Eugene who previously helped in the case of a murder committed during a diamond theft, rent and living expenses for his brother Ray's mistress and his niece, as well as medical costs for his niece's cancer treatment, purchasing an apartment for his son Kyle, on top of living expenses for himself, likely due to a number of extremely shrewd financial decisions and deals Caine made over the years leading up to the series.

Portrayed by: David Caruso
Seasons: 1-10

In 1997, Megan was a Detective working alongside Caine on the Miami Police Department's Homicide Squad. When the Crime Lab was set up in order to assist the police department, she was granted the directorship, whilst Caine was made a supervisor. Both achieved the rank of Lieutenant shortly thereafter. In early 2002, Megan's husband, fellow Detective Sean Donner, attempted to talk a suicidal man from the ledge of a building, but was pulled over with him instead. Sean died in the line of duty, and as a result Megan took a six-month leave of absence. When she returned, Caine had been made Director of the Crime Lab as well as day shift supervisor, and Megan was immediately demoted to his number two.

When Megan first returned to the crime lab, colleague and friend Tim Speedle gave her some sympathy. Megan seemed insulted by this, quickly pulling away from Tim when he patted her on the shoulder. Megan had a friendly relationship with then coroner Alexx Woods. She and Alexx were chatty in autopsy, and clearly got on with each other. Her relationship with Eric Delko was rocky. At one point, Eric stated, "Who does she think she is? She can't just walk back into the lab and take over," to which Tim Speedle replied, "You're an ass, you know that?" Her friendships with Calleigh Duquesne and Horatio Caine were strictly working relationships, with no friendly warmth involved.

Portrayed by: Kim Delaney
Seasons: 1

Calleigh is a ballistics and tool mark specialist originally from Louisiana. She is fluent in Spanish and has a bachelor's degree in physics from Tulane University. While working for the New Orleans Police Department, she gained the nickname "Bullet Girl" for her knowledge of, and expertise with, firearms. Calleigh is an almost eternal optimist, with a sunny disposition and a smile to match. However, this attitude does not in any way interfere with her quest to put criminals where they belong. She is pretty much universally liked by her co-workers, who sometimes remark on her being nearly "way too happy". And while she does not believe in supernatural curses and the like, she does believe in karma. Though her time as a CSI has exposed her to intense violence and gore, in season two it is shown that she has an intense fear of ants which Eric Delko helps her overcome. In season seven, it's also shown that Calleigh uses a Sanyo Pro-700 that has been digitally modified to have as big a screen as her cell phone.

Portrayed by: Emily Procter
Seasons: 1-10

Eric Delko is the fingerprint, tire and drug identification expert of the Miami-Dade Crime Lab, as well as their underwater recovery expert. He was born in Havana, Cuba, on December 18, 1976. His original family name was Delektorsky; his adoptive father, Pavel, is a Russian national who had been assigned to Havana during the 1960s and married a Cuban woman named Carmen, with whom he had three daughters. When Eric's mother was pregnant with him, his father decided that he wanted a better life for his family, so he moved the clan to Miami. He also shortened the family name to Delko in an effort at Americanization. Eric later finds out (in Season 7) that his biological father, Alexander Sharov, is head of the Russian Mob.

Delko typically acts as the team's frogman when the situation arises—his boss has even termed him his best diver. In the episode "Shattered", his job is endangered when he is busted for drug possession. It is later revealed that he had been buying the drugs for his sister Marisol, to ease the pain she suffered while undergoing treatments for leukemia.

It is revealed that Delko is Roman Catholic. He is fluent in Spanish.

On the episode "Dead Woman Walking", Eric has a nosebleed, which he thought may have been from exposure to iodine. Eric has been given a clean bill of health, and Calleigh tells him that he gets nosebleeds during high-pressure situations. His nosebleeds had not been addressed since.

It has been recently[citation needed] revealed that Eric was born in Cuba before his mother and adoptive father arrived in the USA, after which they received fake birth documents for him. Delko pressed his mother for the truth after revealing that he knew his American birth certificate was a forgery, and that he had acquired his real birth certificate from Cuba. He told her he had become suspicious after realizing that several key facts in the story of their arrival in the USA, changed each time she told it. She also told him that his biological father was a terrible man, and that she wanted to shield Eric from him by hiding his identity with the forged papers. Delko's biological father, in fact, orders a hit on him.

The season 8 opener, "Out of Time", reveals in a flashback that Eric had, in the past, discovered a BMW that had been dumped in the Everglades with a body in the trunk and called Detective Caine. Eric was a tow truck driver at the time and knew the area quite well. He helped Caine recover the murder weapon, which Caine used to prevent an innocent man from going to jail. In this same episode, Eric meets Calleigh and hits on her by saying: "Are you going to give me your number now or later"? Calleigh responds that she doesn't date people she's even remotely involved with at work, and Eric replies, "Ok. We'll see". Caine, impressed by Eric's eye for minute details, convinces him to go to the police academy, get his badge, and work for the new CSI team later. Eric accepts the offer.

Portrayed by: Adam Rodriguez
Seasons: 1-7 and 9-10

Alexx Woods, originally from Los Angeles, California, is a medical examiner who worked for the Miami-Dade Police department for six seasons on the show. She is married with two children and is always upbeat and has a good bedside manner with her patients, despite being a coroner. Alexx has a tendency, displayed in many episodes, to talk to the corpses she is examining. She often addresses the corpses as "sweetie", "honey", or "baby boy/girl" in a maternal way, and she often comments that the victims were too young to die. It is nearly her mantra. She is also like a maternal figure to her colleagues, especially to Ryan and Eric when they were injured.

She has two children, a son Bryan and a daughter Jamie. She's also married, her husband's name is Henry.

Portrayed by: Khandi Alexander
Seasons: 1-6

Prior to the character's untimely demise and Rory Cochrane's departure from CSI: Miami at the start of season 3, "Speed" is distinguished in his occasional carelessness in procedure. Especially featured is his neglect of proper sidearm maintenance (season 1, episode 18, "Dispo Day"), which unfortunately was a contributing factor to Speedle's own death.

He also, at one point, borrows Calleigh Duquesne's crime light and forgets to recharge it, much to her annoyance. Speedle's cavalier attitude is also featured in other ways as well. He states that he sees his job as a CSI as no more than a "paycheck", lacking the enthusiasm for criminology and justice shared by the rest of the team (episode 218, "Wannabe"). He rides his bike to work, and claims that he's happy with that rather than a standard automobile (episode 301, "Lost Son").

Showcased in the series is his role as best friend to Adam Rodriguez's Eric Delko. This facet of him is particularly evident in episode 604, "Bang, Bang, Your Debt," a full three years after Speedle's death (episode 301, "Lost Son"). Delko, still feeling the effects of a head injury suffered in "Man Down" (episode 514), suffers from vivid hallucinations of his deceased friend, which ultimately leads to the discovery that Audio-Visual Lab Technician Dan Cooper had stolen Speedle's credit card.

This episode, especially with Speedle's appearance therein, illustrates the ongoing trauma of the violent death of a friend (in this case, Speed) on those who were close with that individual. When Cooper claims that, since Speed is dead, no-one got hurt, Calleigh Duquesne angrily points out that Eric is hurt, and so is she, in particular, by the false hope the card charges (coupled with Delko's hallucinations) gave and Cooper is presumably arrested.

Portrayed by: Rory Cochrane
Seasons: 1-3

Detective Yelina Salas first appears on CSI: Miami as a detective with the Miami-Dade Police Homicide Division. She has a close connection with Horatio Caine, the head of the Miami-Dade Crime Lab: she had married his late brother, Raymond Caine, with whom she has a son, Raymond Caine, Jr. (episode 117, "Simple Man"). Horatio felt it his duty to protect Yelina from the worst of her husband's misdeeds, and so conceals (among other things) the existence of Ray Sr.'s out-of-wedlock daughter (Madison Keaton--episode 208, "Big Brother"). He is forced to tell the truth, however, when Madison falls ill and requires a transplant from Ray Jr. Though she is initially hurt by the revelation, Yelina goes through with the operation, anyway (episode 316, "Nothing to Lose").

In the Season 2 premiere ("Blood Brothers"), after confronting him about his feelings, Horatio admits to Yelina how he had once thought they might be together had she not met his brother Raymond first. However, he will not act on his feelings as he still sees her as his brother's wife, which clearly disappoints her. She later becomes romantically involved with MDPD Internal Affairs Sergeant Rick Stetler, a personal nemesis of Horatio. When she shows up to work with a black eye in one episode, Horatio immediately suspects Stetler of physically abusing her and forcefully warns him not to touch her again (episode 307, "Crime Wave").

Portrayed by: Sofia Milos
Seasons: 3

Ryan Wolfe, a former patrol officer, is hired after CSI Tim Speedle is killed on the job. He has a strong background in science, having majored in chemistry at Boston College and now pursuing a master's degree in genetics. His master's degree takes a back seat to his job; he graduated top of his class at the police academy, well on his way to a promotion.

He catches the attention of CSI Lieutenant Horatio Caine at the scene of a bus crash. He showed great attention to detail and to the care of his sidearm, a Beretta 92, reflecting the fixation on minute details emerging from his obsessive-compulsive disorder. His eye for detail won Caine's respect, since poor gun maintenance led to the misfire at a critical moment that contributed to Wolfe's predecessor, Tim Speedle's tragic death in the Season 3 opener.

He is left-handed as seen in the episode, "Sex and Taxes". In season 7, episode 6 it is revealed that Ryan is afraid of heights. On the Stoned Cold episode, in which a victim was a school bully, he revealed to Eric Delko that he was bullied as a child which resulted in the damage of a telescope that he has saved up on his allowance for. Later, he was surprised by a new telescope in his locker while his colleagues teased him about the story.

Portrayed by: Jonathan Togo
Seasons: 3-10

Detective Sergeant Frank Tripp (Rex Linn) in the Homicide division of the Miami-Dade Police Department in CSI: Miami, (season 5-10; recurring seasons 1-4), is a homicide detective who regularly accompanies the team to the crime scenes. He joined the police force prior to applicants needing an undergraduate degree; although he is not as highly educated as the rest of the team, his knowledge and "street smarts" about the local area come in handy during investigations. He has a gruff appreciation for the capabilities of the CSIs and their excellent results. Consequently, he has a good working relationship with all the CSIs, particularly Calleigh Duquesne. He is divorced, with three kids (episode 118, "Dispo Day"). Before the season six premiere, Tripp is promoted to sergeant and it's seen that he has shaved his head. After passing the sergeant's exam, Tripp was required to spend some time in uniform on a patrol rotation. By episode #611, "Guerrillas in the Mist," he finished his mandatory patrol rotation and is back in Homicide, where his new title is given as "MDPD Homicide Detective Sergeant Frank Tripp".

Frank Tripp is originally from Texas. (Rex Linn, a Texas native later raised in Oklahoma, once missed a day's shooting of CSI: Miami to watch the Rose Bowl when the Texas Longhorns were playing.) Now that he's part of the MDPD, he's since become an avid Florida Gators fan. As a child, Tripp dreamed of being a firefighter. However, after his leg was shattered in a car accident, he fell in love with crime fiction during his many weeks' convalescence. Consequently, he joined the police force straight out of school, and was later transferred to MDPD's gang unit before moving to Homicide.

Tripp frequently accompanies Horatio Caine and his team of CSIs to crime scenes, especially those that involve dangerous gangsters and criminals, as well as assisting them in serving warrants.

Portrayed by: Rex Linn
Seasons: 5-10

Little is known about Natalia's background prior to her association with the FBI and MDPD. In the Season 5 episode "Darkroom", it is revealed that she has at least two younger sisters, Anya and Christine. She was married to Nick Townsend (Rob Estes) and later divorced him due to his abusive nature. In a flashback scene during the Season 8 opener, it is revealed that she had first met Horatio Caine in 1997 during her stint with the FBI.

Natalia is a DNA analyst initially assigned only to work on unsolved or cold cases, though this is, until the end of season four, a cover for her. Following the end of her undercover assignment in the season 4 finale, she resigns from the FBI and joins the MDPD, becoming a CSI Level 1. She is later promoted to Level 2 between seasons 6&7.

Portrayed by: Eva LaRue
Seasons: 5-10

Simmons, a Louisiana native and fluent French speaker, is a CSI from the night shift who transfers to Horatio Caine's day shift team in season 8. He is an art theft specialist promoted to the main cast after three episodes.

Simmons generally has a good working relationship with all the team members. His sense of humor has made him a likeable personality amongst his more senior colleagues. He was especially close to Jesse Cardoza and often played basketball with him. Ryan Wolfe took him under his wing, and the duo have a friendly relationship, though Wolfe occasionally enjoys "pulling the seniority card" and leaves Simmons with the undesirable tasks.

Initially he was distrustful of veteran CSI Eric Delko when Delko was conducting undercover investigations in the episode "Time Bomb", but has since had a mutual respect for him after Delko exonerates Wolfe.

Portrayed by: Omar Benson Miller
Seasons: 8-10

Tara first appears in the second episode of season 7, "Won't Get Fueled Again", as the replacement for murdered coroner Shannon Higgins (the original replacement for the departed Alexx Woods, who appears only in the season 6 finale). Tara's first job is to examine the body of a burned man on a beach. Eric Delko later meets her in the lab and forms an instant attraction to her.

She became part of the main opening cast credits in the season 7 episode "Bombshell" (705).

In the episode "Cheating Death" (707), Delko and Ryan Wolfe switch out the body of a victim for a fake dummy, and attach it to a wire. When Tara walks in, Eric lifts the body up through a remote in the observation deck. Tara, not seeing Eric, thinks the body is moving on its own and screams, frightened. She yells at Eric when he reveals the prank, and later snaps at Ryan when she takes their crime scene photos to recreate the body's original position to determine the weapon used. Calleigh Duquesne helps Price recreate the body position, and reassures her that it's not personal, that they just like to play a prank on the new person at work. She tells Price that when Wolfe was new, she and Delko sent him to his first autopsy, only to find a severed head.

In "Divorce Party" (717) Price joins the team to investigate a homicide where the victim was hung from a gazebo. While they are working the crime scene, the architecture collapses, and Price injures her shoulder. Later that day, Horatio Caine convinces Price to hire his son, Kyle, as an intern in the morgue to protect him from his unstable mother, Julia Winston. A bottle of oxycodone subsequently goes missing from a car accident victim. Julia is instantly accused of stealing them, even by Kyle, as she is seen visiting him on his first day. At the end of the episode, Price is seen putting the pills into her pocket. In a later episode, Kyle witnesses her popping a pill into her mouth while examining a body- he confronts her about it and she defensively replies, "I don't have to explain myself to you, Kyle." In "Collateral Damage", when a homemade grenade goes off in autopsy, she frantically tries to pick up the pills (which fell out of her pocket during the blast). Ryan notices this, and tells her to get help.

In "Dissolved" (724), Wolfe catches her stealing pills again and again he urges her to come forward. She refuses, however, and Ryan reminds her what would happen if he caught her again. After more false assurances by her, Wolfe tells Caine about her problem. They get a search warrant for her workplace locker, where they discover a bag of pill bottles containing multiple prescriptions for oxycodone stolen from morgue intake. Wolfe goes to the morgue and he matches the prescription names to the corpse's tags. Just as he is about to confront Price, Julia Winston, suffering a psychotic break, fires a shot and demands her son come with her. Later, after the shooting is resolved with no casualties, Wolfe tells Price in the autopsy room that they are wanted by Internal Affairs, supposedly to get their depositions after the shooting in the morgue. However, both know that it is in reference to Price directly. As she leaves the morgue, she turns and looks back into the room, knowing she will never be back. IAB Sgt. Rick Stetler tells her that they know she framed Julia Winston, which set in motion the chain of events that lead to the shooting. As the police take her into custody in her blue scrubs, Delko and Wolfe watch her go. As she is led into the elevator, Tara alternately makes and avoids eye contact as the elevator door shuts.

Portrayed by: Megalyn Echikunwoke
Seasons: 7

In 1997, Cardoza left the Miami-Dade Police Department, transferring to the Los Angeles Police Department following the conclusion of a case which led to Horatio Caine becoming lead CSI. He recommended the hire of Tim Speedle to Horatio. Cardoza returned in 2009 as a member of Caine's team.

In the Season 8 episode, "L.A", it was revealed that a lack of evidence on a case involving a man suspected of killing his wife had cost Cardoza his job as a Los Angeles Police Officer and had also left his reputation in tatters. This later prompted him to rejoin the Miami Dade Police Department where he eventually became a CSI.

His first reappearance is in the episode "Hostile Takeover", when he is shown talking to a receptionist. A mentally unstable man then takes him and three others hostage. In the episode's conclusion, Jesse returns to Horatio's team. Horatio welcomes him back and tells him to replace his LAPD badge with the MDPD badge.

A mileage discrepancy in the vehicle logs from a day when Calleigh lent him her Hummer led her to confront Cardoza about the differences. After a heated discussion, Cardoza then tells Calleigh that he was following a woman who was living with a serial killer he had investigated during his time in LA, who had also killed his wife, Tracy.

Cardoza is in the crime lab when it is poisoned with Halon gas by serial killer Bob Starling, and dies after he hits and cuts his head during his fall, suffering a subdural hemorrhage. The other team members attempt to revive him without success.

Walter is the one most hit by his death and talks to his body about a basketball game they had planned for that night, and about Walter's having called Cardoza's mother, who wants her son to be buried in California; Walter says Horatio is arranging it.

Horatio Caine leads the manhunt for Starling all over the city. Starling tries to evade justice goading Caine into killing him via suicide by cop, but Caine will not allow Starling to get off that easy and Caine is able to formally arrest Starling for first degree murder of a police officer and attempted murder of the rest of the team.

At the end of the episode, Walter is at the basketball court, shooting baskets when the rest of the CSI team show up and split into teams for a game. Eric passes the ball to Horatio who says, "This is for Jesse", before making a perfect shot.

Portrayed by: Eddie Cibrian
Seasons: 8

The current medical examiner. Despite the macabre nature of his work, he seems genuinely excited by it, even performing an autopsy on the fly for some medical students on a cadaver donated to science, which was eventually discovered to be a victim of a crime the CSIs were investigating. In contrast to his usually upbeat demeanor, he does occasionally lament at how violent people can be to each other, but if anything, this only strengthens his resolve to discover what killed those who entered his morgue. Often, when he runs with a theory or conducts an examination, he gets frustrated or upset when anyone, including the CSI's, interrupt him, or makes them wait until his theory is confirmed or denied by the evidence, even going so far as preventing them from collecting evidence off the body until he conducts his examination in the autopsy room.

Portrayed by: Christian Clemenson
Seasons: 8-10