TV Character Profile: Dr. Raymond Langston

Name: Ray Langston
Show: CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, Las Vegas


In the season 9 episode "The Grave Shift", Langston began his first day on the job. His first day was troubling for him as he overdusted a print and ruined it, dropped a burned body and tearing its shift then getting his necktie stuck in the victim's blood, causing it to become evidence, and drawing Riley Adams' criticism when he reprimands a man who strikes his son. He also received a cold welcome from David Hodges, who was still unhappy about Gil Grissom's departure, but who warms up to Langston after the latter demonstrates a cornmeal bomb. Nevertheless, the team accepts him as one of their own, inviting him to join them at a diner.

In later episodes, it is revealed that Langston has a number of interests, including blues music and quickly befriended the like-minded Doc Al Robbins. In "Deep Fried and Minty Fresh", it is revealed Langston knows some Mandarin Chinese. He is the only member of the team who rides a motorcycle to work.

Langston, despite his calm demeanor, occasionally takes cases personally. In his first case, he reprimanded a father for shouting at his son while the team was searching the boy's room, earning a reprimand from Riley about keeping an emotional distance. In "Mascara", one of his former students who was planning on joining CSI is killed, and Langston attacks the suspects when he blames it on a god. Later using his author contacts, publishes her book for her. He was forced to kill a suspect in self-defense in the episode "All In"; his lack of guilt over the event worries him. It was the first time he had taken a life in the line of duty. In episode "No Way Out" he and fellow CSI Riley Adams are held hostage in the aftermath of a shootout in a quiet Las Vegas neighborhood in which Riley was successfully able to disarm the suspect.

By the tenth season premiere episode, Langston has taken numerous courses (going so far as to max out the hours the lab will pay for and paying out of his own pocket) and has since been promoted to CSI Level 2, as well as to being cleared of suspicion from the events of "All In". As seen in "Sin City Blues", he said no to giving his DNA to the crime lab to clear him from the investigation; the reason why is later speculated on by Wendy Simms and David Hodges in "Doctor Who," though the two draw no concrete conclusions. In the episode "All That Cremains." it is revealed that he was once married to a woman named Gloria; yet it is known from the CSI: NY season six episode "Hammer Down," he had no children with her. She arrives at the crime lab to visit Ray, tell him she is getting married, and invites him to the wedding. She asks Ray to come to dinner where he will meet her future husband. He said that he would think about it, but he does arrive at dinner to meet them. At the end of the episode, he gets dressed up and Nick Stokes notices that he is still wearing his wedding ring. Nick suggests that Ray not to wear it at the wedding. After Nick leaves, Ray takes his ring off and puts it in his locker and leaves for the wedding.