Detective Louise Campesi was a precinct detective working for the NYPD, who occasionally worked with the Major Case Squad and the Manhattan Special Victims Unit.
Campesi is a minor character usually assisting the main detectives of the department, assisting their investigations or giving them information.
On CI[]
Campesi is first introduced to the Major Case Squad after they are called in to investigate the murder of Anya Pugach. She hands Detective Logan a copy of the credit card receipt for the room she was killed in; the credit card is registered to Gerry Mitchell. (CI: "Lonelyville")
Campesi is later called to the crime scene of Monica Frye, a renowned marriage therapist and the wife of a corrupt judge. She hands the case over to Major Crimes and is asked by Detective Falacci to check on the judge and their daughter's alibis. She then briefs Logan as he enters the house. Campesi is later reprimanded by Falacci when she allows the judge, who was still a suspect, to sit in his chair, which is part of the crime scene. Falacci then demands that Campesi get him out of the crime scene, but Campesi only complies when Logan tells her it is okay. (CI: "Courtship")
When a drug dealer and two English tourists, Gerry and Victoria Bennett, are all shot in Redhook, Campesi is the responding detective. She later briefs Detective Eames when the case is transferred to Major Crimes. Campesi identifies the dealer as Wilson Crawford and informs Eames that the victims were shot at around 11:00 with no witnesses. Eames orders her to start canvassing the surrounding area and Campesi complies. (CI: "Purgatory")
When Sylvia Rhodes, the host of a talk show, is murdered, Campesi is the responding detective. She later briefs Logan and Detective Wheeler when the case is transferred to Major Crimes. Campesi tells them that there were no signs of forced entry and all of Rhodes's belongings are still there, indicating it wasn't a robbery gone bad. When Logan asks where the son Milo is, Campesi tells them that he is at the apartment of Jordie Black, Rhodes's neighbor. (CI: "Reunion")
Campesi is later reassigned as a patrol officer at the 22nd Precinct. She is the responding officer when a man named Kip McGonagle is shot in the leg and left for dead at a hospital. After Eames and Detective Goren review the hospital footage, Campesi gives them some background on McGonagle and then informs them that they are still looking for the primary crime scene. (CI: "All In")
On SVU[]
Campesi is called to a Brazilian diplomat's home after someone used the security code to break inside. The diplomat tells Campesi that the intruder held him at gunpoint, tied him up, raped his wife, and stole some cash and significant paintings. He then tells Campesi that he got a good look at his face. As a result, Campesi calls both the Special Victims Unit and the Major Case Squad for assistance based on the rape and stolen artwork. She and Detective Tutuola are later baffled when the diplomat changes his story, saying that the intruder wore a mask. (SVU: "Gambler's Fallacy")
Campesi is later partnered with Detective Gail Dunbar, and they are assigned to investigate the bar brawl between the Amaro and Nuñez families. She watches Nicholas Amaro being arrested by Dunbar and another officer and then escorted into a squad car. She then asks Detective Amaro if he wants to talk to his father, but he declines and gives her his blessing to do their job. Campesi then informs Amaro that they will need his statement and he agrees. She goes to the hospital to interview the witnesses with Dunbar. She later informs Sergeant Benson that Gabriella, Nicholas' fiancee, is changing her story and the EMT at the scene is blaming Amaro. Campesi then lets Dunbar and Benson interview Gabriella. (SVU: "Padre Sandunguero")
Campesi is later partnered with Detective Robert "Doom" Dumas at the 27th Precinct, and they are assigned to investigate when a boy walks into a convenience store alone. Their sergeant recommends calling SVU to deal with the child. Campesi later informs Benson, Fin, and Deputy Chief William Dodds that the child is refusing to talk and had walked in all by himself. (SVU: "Institutional Fail")
Campesi and Dumas later become the primaries on a string of push-in rapes and robberies, and they call SVU for assistance. When Fin asks if they got a description on the assailant, Campesi denies it. When the victim's 12-year-old daughter Sophie is discovered to be missing, Campesi helps search the building and surrounding areas by taking the hallway. Detective Carisi eventually finds her, and Campesi witnesses Sophie being loaded into an ambulance. She heads back to the 27th Precinct and learns that the victim's husband's brother is a police officer from the 12th Precinct, conversing with Fin and Sergeant Kevin Donlan about the situation. Campesi later listens to Benson and Captain Reece brief them about the serial rapist. She later shows a sketch of the rapist to a convenience store clerk.
When Detective Rollins gets a hit on the credit card stolen from the victim, Campesi and the other officers respond. The store clerk tells them that the suspect withdrew some money after trying to get more and warns that he had a gun on his right side. She and Donlan then leave to canvass the area. When Donlan starts chasing a suspect, Campesi and Dumas join the pursuit while the rest of the officers try to cut the suspect off. The three officers split up; Campesi and Donlan continue the pursuit while Dumas goes another way. When the suspect unsuccessfully attempts to get into a building, the officers pull their weapons out while confronting him. They all see the man reaching for something and open fire on him. While Dumas stops after firing three shots, Campesi and Donlan unload their magazines into him.
After the scene is secured, all three are taken to the hospital to get checked out. They are interviewed by Internal Affairs with their delegate and attorneys beside them. The three all give identical statements, which causes problems. Campesi eventually finds out that all three are suspended without pay on the news, and all of them go to a bar. When Rollins shows up, Campesi asks her why she is here in a hostile manner. When Dumas explains that he called her over, she and Donlan leave in protest. During the grand jury trial, Campesi and Donlan testify that they followed their training and made the right calls, but Dumas struggles with his story. The grand jury eventually indicts Campesi and Donlan for manslaughter, while Dumas is charged with reckless endangerment. The three, plus the SVU officers, go to a local bar to discuss the events. Campesi blames A.D.A. Barba for handing down the indictment despite Carisi trying to explain they had a runaway jury. (SVU: "Community Policing")
Campesi was later acquitted and kept her job, though she lost her detective shield and is now working as a uniformed officer. (SVU: "Solving For The Unknowns") She assists Rollins and Tamin at a crime scene after a woman is raped but acts hostile towards the detectives. Rollins becomes annoyed at Campesi's lack of interest or care for the victim. (SVU: "Hunt, Trap, Rape, and Release")
Campesi is later promoted back to Detective. She calls the SVU in for assistance in solving the Guzman family case. (SVU: "Burning With Rage Forever")
Officer-involved shootings[]
- Terrence Reynolds (SVU: "Community Policing")
Appearances[]
- Law & Order: Criminal Intent (3 seasons, 6 episodes):
- Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (6 seasons, 7 episodes):