Sergeant John Munch
Munch is an intelligent detective, picking up on the little details that the others often miss. He is knowledgeable about politics, is very well-read and is known to be a little paranoid, often talking of conspiracy theories. He sometimes wonders about the impact of technology on peoples' privacy, finding that his job sometimes goes against his moral ideals. However, being a dedicated and caring detective, he is happy to go along. He is technically Jewish and has been married a total of four times, all of which ended in divorce.
As a child, Munch was unhappy and he rarely discusses his past. However, he has opened up a little with his colleagues at times and a deaf woman (played by Marlee Matlin), who helped a woman commit suicide, hit a nerve with him. He admitted to her that when he was a child, his father committed suicide. He said that the last thing he said to him is something he has regretted since. He thought the woman felt guilty about helping someone die and wanted to help her. She made another appearance some episodes later and Munch showed through his compassion towards her that she had obviously broken through his tough shell.
Something to note about the character, John Munch, is that he has been played by Richard Belzer on other shows than
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, the most noteable being
Homocide: Life On The Street. He has also appeared in
Law & Order,
Law & Order: Trial By Jury,
The X-Files,
The Beat and
Arrested Development.
