Dexter (episode)
Dexter is contacted by his foster sister Debra (Jennifer Carpenter), a vice officer in the Miami Metro Police Department. Dexter, a blood spatter analyst for the department, assists Debra in investigating an apparent serial killer targeting prostitutes. Dexter examines the latest victim and is shocked to find no trace of blood on the dismembered corpse. At the police station, Dexter discusses another murder case being handled by James Doakes (Erik King), a detective who dislikes him. Later, Dexter watches Jamie Jaworski, a murderer who escaped justice due to a faulty warrant, and breaks into his home to find evidence. Once he confirms that Jaworski is guilty, Dexter meets with his girlfriend Rita Bennett (Julie Benz), a former victim of domestic abuse victim; Rita has two young children, Astor and Cody. While on a date with Rita, Dexter finds another murder scene with no traces of blood, this time with the victim's head missing. Dexter theorizes that the killer murders his victims in extreme cold, explaining the absence of blood, and might be using a stolen refrigerated truck. Dexter allows Debra to pitch the theory, but their superior officer, Lt. María LaGuerta (Lauren Vélez), dismisses it.
List of Dexter characters
She returns to her old job once the new Lieutenant, Esme Pascal, proves to be unstable (a state LaGuerta intentionally worsens by having an affair with Pascal's fiancé). When her friend and former partner and lover, James Doakes, becomes the prime suspect in the Bay Harbor Butcher case, she tries to clear his name. However, Doakes is found dead in a seemingly accidental explosion along with the body of drug dealer Jose Garza, and the case is closed. As she recovers from the trauma of Doakes' death, she leads an investigation into the murder of Oscar Prado, the brother of her ex-boyfriend, Miguel Prado. She also develops a close relationship with defense attorney Ellen Wolf, and is devastated when Wolf is found murdered. After Miguel's own murder (ostensibly at the hands of The Skinner, but in reality by Dexter), she wants to find admissible evidence to prove he killed Wolf, but Dexter is able to convince her that doing so would only hurt Miguel's family and the Cuban community, and that even then there is a high chance that nothing will be proved. Reluctantly, LaGuerta drops it.