Kima Greggs

Shakima Greggs
First appearance	"The Target" (episode 1.01)
Last appearance	"–30–" (episode 5.10)
Created by	David Simon
Portrayed by	Sonja Sohn
Information
Aliases	Kima
Gender	Female
Occupation	Baltimore Police Detective
Title	Detective
Spouse(s)	Cheryl (former)
Children	Elijah (Son)
Relatives	Money Bags

Shakima "Kima" Greggs is a fictional character on the HBO drama The Wire, played by actress Sonja Sohn. Greggs is a police detective in the Baltimore Police Department who is a dedicated officer and capable detective with some off-the-job issues. Openly lesbian, she has had problems involving infidelity, alcohol, and relationships. Greggs played a key role in all of the show's main cases.

Biography

Season 1

Kima was a narcotics detective working alongside Detectives Ellis Carver and Thomas "Herc" Hauk and under shift lieutenant Cedric Daniels in Major Foerster's narcotics division. She outshone her colleagues on several occasions, but was held in high esteem by the two due to her abilities. She cultivated a relationship with her Confidential Informant, Bubbles, a Baltimore drug addict, who became a useful contact due to his extraordinary memory for faces. Greggs lived with her partner Cheryl, a broadcast journalist, and was studying for a law degree from home, having been pressured to do so by Cheryl.

Greggs was assigned the task of putting a file together on the Barksdale organization in the controversy generated by the acquittal of D'Angelo Barksdale. She was then assigned to the Barksdale detail and made lead detective by Lt. Daniels. Greggs managed to obtain invaluable information from Bubbles, who correctly identified Barksdale Organization members on the street and worked out the methods of their operation. Detective Jimmy McNulty and Kima worked closely together during the Barksdale case. Greggs became friends with McNulty and introduced him to Bubbles. When Bubbles confirmed to McNulty that Kima was a lesbian, Jimmy complimented Kima, claiming the only other competent female detective he worked with was also a lesbian. McNulty jokingly added from there that they could both have fun talking about "pussy." Greggs told him being open about her sexuality kept attention from male colleagues away. They spent hours together in surveillance and put in more time trying to track down the legendary stick-up man Omar Little. They managed to get Omar's attention after he got into a war with the Barksdale organization, during which Omar's lover and stick-up partner was murdered, and persuaded him to testify against Barksdale soldier Bird for the murder of William Gant.

Greggs provided a second useful confidential informant while working with Lester Freamon. They persuaded D'Angelo's new girlfriend Shardene Innes to turn against him by providing her with evidence that the Barksdale crew were responsible for the death of a friend of hers. Shardene met D'Angelo through working as a hostess at Orlando's, a strip club and front for the Barksdale organization.

Greggs was shot and wounded in an undercover buy bust operation ordered by Deputy Commissioner Ervin Burrell. The sting relied on Wendell "Orlando" Blocker, a front man for the Barksdale organization and license holder for Orlando's. Orlando was arrested by narcotics police and turned over to the Barksdale detail when they diligently checked to see if any of the names Orlando gave them were under investigation. Orlando was killed in the failed sting and Greggs was shot before she could retrieve the weapon she had hidden in the vehicle they were using. By the time her backup arrived on the scene the shooters had fled. The Barksdale detail's wiretaps identified those responsible as the soldiers Savino, Wee-Bey and Little Man. Both Savino and Wee-Bey were arrested and Little Man was murdered before the police could reach him.

Season 2

Greggs recovered fully from her injuries and took a desk job in the narcotics unit, at the request of her girlfriend Cheryl, who feared her getting injured again and hoped to start a family. Greggs was teased by her old partner Herc and missed the action of street work.

She joined the investigation of Frank Sobotka under Lieutenant Daniels at his request. Her return to street duty caused major friction between herself and Cheryl, now pregnant with a child.

Greggs worked with Prez to investigate the vice aspects of the smuggling ring linked to Frank Sobotka. They located a brothel operating out of a high class apartment building using women illegally brought into the country and held like prisoners. Greggs' contact Shardene Innes was useful in providing links to the exotic dancing world that pointed them towards the whorehouse. Cheryl insisted on accompanying Kima to the strip clubs, showing a jealous streak. When Kima showed Cheryl photos of the girls killed in a failed attempt to smuggle them into the country Cheryl began to be more understanding. Cheryl also makes a decision to become pregnant through artificial insemination this season and asks for Kima's support in raising the child. Greggs however is not interested in parenting and only goes through reluctantly.

Later McNulty rejoined the team and Greggs worked with him to infiltrate the apartment building by setting him up as a potential customer. Their hard work resulted in the arrest of the madam and other members of the detail solved the deaths of the other girls.

Greggs moved on to trying to investigate the leaders of the smuggling ring but the detail found the trail ran dry just as they were closing on "The Greek" and his lieutenant Spiros Vondas.

Bubbles was arrested near the end of Sobotka case and called on his connection to Greggs to get out of trouble. He turned Greggs and McNulty onto investigating the link between East side drug kingpin Proposition Joe and their old target Stringer Bell. Greggs and McNulty soon acquired photos of the two meeting together.^[1][2]

Season 3

Greggs continued working with Lieutenant Daniels when the Major Case Unit was formed. The unit initially tried to build a case against Proposition Joe. They found that they made little progress through their wiretaps because the key members of Joe's organization did not talk on the phone. The case broke down when the unit arrested Melvin "Cheese" Wagstaff on suspicion of murder when in reality he was talking about shooting his pet dog over the wiretap. With Proposition Joe aware of the wiretaps Daniels decided the unit had to move on.

Greggs became something of a rogue element alongside McNulty. The two pursued the Barksdale organization even when the unit was supposed to be focused on Park Heights drug dealer Kintel Williamson. Freamon became exasperated with Greggs' lack of respect for Daniels. Greggs also became dissatisfied with her personal life now that Cheryl had her baby and began to cheat on her. Greggs went far enough to admit that she only agreed on the baby as a means of appeasing Cheryl. Eventually Greggs decided she had made a mistake and the two reconciled.

The Barksdales became involved in a turf war with Marlo Stanfield and the unit shifted their focus back to them. The unit infiltrated the Barksdale organization with wiretaps and had many of their key players tied in a case including Stringer Bell. Bell was murdered before the Major Crimes Unit could arrest him; he was given up by Avon as their friendship broke down. Avon was arrested, but on the basis of a tip from Bell before his death rather than the unit's casework. At the close of the season Daniels was promoted to Major and left the unit.^[3]

Season 4

Greggs and Freamon became the de facto leaders of the unit when Daniels was promoted to commander of the Western District. Their new commander Lieutenant Jimmy Asher was a friend of Freamon's and was a lenient commander focused on his retirement and building a beach house. As a result, Asher did not mind what they did leaving them to go about the investigation without any chain of command interference. As elections approached Freamon picked up the investigation of the Barksdale money trail and served subpoenas for financial records on many high-ranking political figures. Greggs was responsible for delivering the subpoena to campaign fundraiser Andy Krawczyk. Freamon convinced the others that they would be protected from the politicians because they were under close scrutiny at election time.

The unit focused on Marlo Stanfield's organization now that he had control of West Baltimore. They quickly gathered probable cause for wiretaps on key Stanfield lieutenants Fruit and Monk Metcalf. Fruit was murdered but Bunk Moreland from homicide faithfully delivered his cellphone to the unit allowing them to establish more of the Stanfield network. Greggs was responsible for surveillance of a drug dealer supplied by Stanfield, Old Face Andre. She determined that his re-supply was delivered to a convenience store that he ran. The detail felt they were making progress when they recorded Marlo talking to Andre on Monk's phone. Greggs even recognised the sound of gunshots in the background and wondered why Marlo was taking shooting practice when they had been unable to tie him to any drug murders.

Because of the subpoenas, Commissioner Ervin Burrell was threatened by Mayor Clarence Royce for trying to charge his campaign fundraisers weeks before the election. Deputy Commissioner William Rawls suggested that the problem be solved by giving the unit "proper supervision" and installed Lieutenant Charles Marimow as the new commander. Marimow ordered the unit to stop investigating the Barksdale money trail and to close down their investigation of Stanfield. Marimow reasoned that they should be making faster cases against street level dealers tied to violence. Dismayed at this change in direction Greggs decided to transfer out of the unit. She went to Major Daniels to ask for a position in his district. Daniels insisted that Greggs was too skilled an investigator for district work but offered to help her move laterally. He secured Greggs a position in the homicide unit by asking Rawls.

Greggs transfers into Jay Landsman's squad and is joined by Freamon. She faces merciless teasing from her colleagues. Greggs is further embarrassed when she is ordered to take over the Braddock case - an investigation of a murdered witness - because of pressure to slow the investigation. A further indignity occurs when the story of the reassignment is leaked to the press and the original investigator, Ed Norris, is reassigned as the primary. Greggs, Norris and Landsman attend a press conference intended to defuse the story with the facade that Greggs and Norris were working together all along. When Greggs and Norris attempt to interview a prisoner who claims to have information about the shooting, their investigation is again scuppered by Rawls who orders them to work uniform duty at a polling station. Rawls explains to Landsman that whichever way the case goes, it will hurt the chances of one of the mayoral candidates who are neck and neck in the polls. After the election, Greggs is able to proceed with the investigation. She interviews the main suspect in the case but comes to the conclusion that he is innocent. Greggs then picks out a detail in the case which leads her back to the crime scene, where she spots a ricochet mark in a nearby wall. Greggs realizes that Braddock was killed accidentally by a stray bullet, not because he was a witness.

In Episode 9, Greggs's paycheck reveals her address as 847 N Calvert St, No. 3, in Mount Vernon neighborhood, although the zip code of 21218 would place the address further north, on 33rd St near the former Memorial Stadium site. Her bi-weekly pay, including the substantial overtime from two major cases, is $2,521.53.

When she's quietly sounded out by Lester Freamon as to how she's enjoying working homicide Greggs tells him she's loving it, causing Freamon to move along without offering her a position on the newly restructured major crimes unit. However, after witnessing Bubbles, her former CI, recovering from an attempted suicide Greggs appears to have a change of heart and at the end of the season is seen back with the old unit once more.

Season 5

Greggs is drafted into the reconstituted major crimes unit by Lester Freamon. They spend a year investigating the Stanfield Organization and their potential links to the vacant house murders. Greggs is frustrated when financial problems at city hall lead to withholding of the department's overtime pay. Eventually the major crimes unit is closed down by Mayor Tommy Carcetti and Greggs is transferred back into the homicide unit.^[4][5]

Greggs is assigned as the primary investigator on a home invasion and triple homicide. The murder was committed by Chris Partlow and Snoop and the victims were a drug dealer named Junebug, his partner and his bodyguard. Junebug's two children are witnesses to the crime. One child fled the scene but Greggs finds the other still hiding in the closet. She arranges for the child to be taken in by social services. Greggs and her partner on the case Michael Crutchfield recognize that the killings are professional in nature because of the disabling of security cameras outside the house and the pattern of the wounds.^[6][7] Continuing budget constraints mean that Crutchfield is quickly taken off the case and Greggs is left to work alone.^[8][9] Greggs visits the child witness to try to get a statement but the child remains withdrawn. Greggs decides to try and reconnect with Cheryl and her son Elijah and arranges for him to stay overnight.^[10]

After McNulty confessed to Greggs that he created the fake serial killer, Greggs was stunned and angry about the deception and waste of resources.^[11] She reported McNulty and Freamon to Daniels, which led to the end of their careers in the Police Department. At McNulty and Freamon's 'wake' commemorating the end of their police careers, Greggs arrives late and admits to them both that she blew the whistle. McNulty says she did the right thing and shakes hands with her before going home, and Freamon invites her into the bar to drink with him and his former colleagues. Kima is last seen on a homicide call with Bunk, enjoying lighthearted conversation with him that echoed Bunk's earlier conversations with McNulty.^[12]

A major alliance in previous seasons, Greggs and Bubbles do not come in contact with each other after Bubbles decided to pursue a full rehabilitation following the events of season 4. No longer an informant, Bubbles achieves a full rehabilitation and reconciles with his sister.

References