Raina Press

Raina Press is the main villainess from "Turn of the Screws," the antepenultimate episode of CSI 's fourth season.

She was played by Kate Vernon, who later played villainess Dr. Penelope Russell in Season Nine of the series.

Raina Press is a waitress and the divorced mother of 13-year-old Tessa Press, who was found dead. She presented herself to Catherine Willows as a caring and grieving mother following the discovery of Tessa's body, though as revealed later on, Raina's grieving covered up her callous personality, as she had harbored twisted jealousy of Tessa. Raina she had repeatedly accused her of attempting to steal her boyfriend, Justin Shaw, from her. She gave Tessa a bus pass to use to head to school, doing so to keep Tessa away from Justin. However, Raina spotted Tessa arriving home in Justin's truck; a sight that drove Raina mad with fury.

After Tessa exited Justin's truck, the evil Raina snarled at her daughter, once again accusing Tessa of seducing Justin. The villainess continued her rant just as Tessa's back was turned, and it was at that moment that Raina picked up Justin's shovel and killed Tessa with a single blow to her head. After the murder, Raina took Tessa's body and drove to a secluded area, where she dumped her deceased daughter near train tracks. As part of Raina's villainous ruse, she falsely claimed that Tessa was sleeping over at a friend's house, which is why she didn't report her missing.

Raina's reveal began when Warrick discovered that a substance known as ZooDoo (a mix of fertilizer from different animals) was on Tessa's wound, with the substance being connected to Justin's landscape business. After searching Justin's truck, the shovel was found, and Raina's prints confirmed her as the killer. With her lawyer present, Raina coldly admitted to killing her daughter, and made rambling accusations that Tessa was stealing Justin from her. Raina's callousness continued when she stated that Justin, not Tessa, was the best thing in her life, and after this, she was arrested (off-screen) for her daughter's murder.