Prisoners
Sentenced to Litchfield, NY federal prison for women for 15 months for carrying drug money for her then lover, Alex Vause, Chapman is currently engaged to Larry Bloom. Chapman and Larry are determined that her incarceration will not affect their relationship. She spends much of the first season trying to find her place in the prisoner hierarchy only to stumble over her feet/mouth every time, sometimes with the help of Larry. Chapman is surprised to run into Alex Vause in Litchfield, and not happy about it since she believes Alex gave her name up to the police. Piper has an ongoing boutique soap business with her friend Polly Harper that they started prior to Piper's legal problems.
Alex came from an impoverished background. Her mother worked 4 jobs and her father, a washed up rock star, was not present. Alex was often bullied for her appearance and lack of money. Finally going to meet her father, Alex is disillusioned by what she finds. She also makes the acquaintance of Fahri, who will become her boss in the international drug smuggling business. She and Piper have been lovers for a while when Alex asks her to carry drug money into the US. She gives up Piper's name after being arrested on drug charges in exchange for a sentencing deal, but hides that fact from Piper. She wants to reconnect with Piper, but ends up unable to deal with Piper's wishy-washy attitude.
Miss Claudette is Piper's roommate. She is very strict about her living space and is feared by other inmates, including Piper at first. Over time they develop a more friendly relationship which is threatened by Larry's actions. On the outside she ran an illegal immigrant, child labor cleaning service. She first came to the US through this same service. She is rumored to have murdered someone and to not be someone you should turn your back on, or close your eyes to sleep near. She is in love with a man from her past, Jean Baptiste (James McDaniel).
Red owned a restaurant with her husband and slowly worked her way up in the Russian mob. She is in charge of the prison's kitchen and has exact rules of behavior for her chosen circle. Some are former drug addicts who she has nursed through withdrawal. All have 2 chances and then are booted from her circle. Insulting Red is a guarantee of starvation, as Piper finds out. Red is the "source" in Litchfield. She can get anything through her previous mob connections. She refuses to assist in bringing drugs into the prison.
Red's Kitchen staff: Norma Romano (Annie Golden), Gina Murphy (Abigail Savage)
Nichols is a former junkie and one of the inmates that Red nurses through detox. She is loud mouthed and very out there. Nichols is Red's most trusted girl. She looks up to Red and becomes disillusioned by some of Red's actions, specifically where they concern another inmate, Tricia Miller.
Sophia went to prison for credit card fraud. She is a transgender woman who paid for her surgery through proceeds for her credit card scam. As a man she was married to Crystal (Tanya Wright) and is the father of Michael (Michael Rainey Jr.). Sophia is one of the prison's hair stylists, and the one preferred by most of the inmate characters. She works on the barter system, as do most things in the prison run by inmates. Sophia is trying to reach peace with her previous choices and relationships with her family.
Doggett preaches the word of God in the prison, though it's clear she has a somewhat warped view of God and her place with Him. She works in the prison laundry room, along with some of her gang and Alex. She forms a grudge against Alex, which carries over to Piper. She is more active in intimidating Piper as she is basically afraid of Alex. Doggett is in prison for shooting a nurse in an abortion clinic for "disrespectin" her. The nurse commented on the number of abortions Doggett had. She is turned into a "Pro-Life" celebrity for the shooting and defended by a Christian law firm. The elation went to her head and has her believing, "God had found her." In her mind, she develops healing powers, an idea egged on by Alex and Piper with the help of a few other inmates. Piper is instrumental in her downfall and reassignment to the psych ward. Though Piper assists in having her released, Doggett swears revenge through instructions from God and sets out to kill Piper.
Doggett's gang: Leanne Taylor (Emma Myles).
She is the best friend of Poussey. Taystee barters with Piper for a lock of her blonde hair. She works in the law library and is a fan of Harry Potter. She is released on parole from prison, but finds the outside to be too harsh to cope with. She returns to finish out her sentence.
Poussey is named after the place in France where her father served. She is the best friend of Taystee, and encourages her to seek parole. She has served 2 years of a 6 year sentence when the series opens. It is discovered that her mother died while Poussey was in Litchfield.
She is one of Aleida Diaz's daughters. She was the predominant caretaker for her siblings during her youth. She is having an affair with guard, John Bennett, and becomes pregnant with his child. She is part of the plot, with Red and Aleida, to frame guard George "Pornstache" Mendez for rape. She participates in order to protect John from being arrested for sexual battery, as an inmate can't legally give consent for sex.
Aleida is Daya's mother and another inmate. She paid little attention to her children as they grew up. Aleida preferred going out with men and partying. She later helped to make drugs in her own kitchen for her boyfriend, Cesar (Berto Colon). She also plots with Red to frame guard George "Pornstache" Mendez.
Crazy Eyes decides on their first meeting that Piper is her "wife" and begins to show up wherever Piper is. She gives Piper gifts and attempts to romance her, refusing to accept that Piper isn't interested. She quotes Shakespeare frequently. It turns out she actually had some mental issues and is a frequent visitor to the psych ward. She has an agreement with the guards and a signal to show she is in control, no matter how outrageous her behavior. She and Piper form an understanding, if not a friendship later on.
Watson arrives at Litchfield on the same transport as Piper. She was a gifted high school track star with offers of college scholarships. She fell in with the wrong man and was arrested for robbing a store. She is on the Electrical work detail with Piper and ends up doing a stint in SHU (solitary confinement). She has issues with Yoga Jones for various reasons after being released from SHU.
It's implied that Lorna wound up in prison due to scamming people on ebay. She has a fiancé, Christopher, who she hasn't seen since three weeks after her sentence began, and she is obsessed with planning their wedding and honeymoon. Despite this she frequently engaged in a sexual relationship with Nicky.
Miller is a former junkie who grew up on the streets, descending eventually into prostitution to support her habit. She is lovers with Mercy. She is kicked out of Red's gang for drug abuse. Throughout her life she has kept a journal of all the people she "borrowed" from so she can pay them back eventually.
Sister Ingalls is a nun who was arrested and convicted after chaining herself to a federal nuclear facility during a protest. She is the voice of reason concerning God that offsets Doggett's fanatical dogma. The Sister helps Sophia to make peace with her self and her wife.
Yoga has assumed the role of the prison's yoga instructor. She carries a dark secret and uses yoga to find peace with her burden. Finds herself in conflict with Janae Watson.
