Roland Brice

Roland Brice
Portrayed by	Hassan Johnson
Seasons	1, 2, 3, 4, 5
First seen	"The Target"
Last seen	"-30-"
Episode count	20
Name	Roland Brice
Also known as	Wee-Bey
Occupation	Inmate, MCI - Jessup (2002-Present)
Previous Occupations	Enforcer, Barksdale Organization (?-2002)
Family Members	De'Londa Brice (partner) Namond Brice (son)

Roland "Wee-Bey" Brice was the primary enforcer for the Barksdale Organization. He was sentenced to life without parole in 2002.

Biography

Background

Wee-Bey dropped out of school in sixth grade and started dealing drugs on a corner with Avon Barksdale and Russell Bell (both slightly older than him), eventually becoming the primary soldier in their criminal organization. Wee-Bey was also responsible for more mundane activities including driving and picking up money. In contrast to his long list of crimes, Wee-Bey is good-natured towards his friends, and has a passion for keeping pet fish. He has a son, Namond, by a woman named De'Londa, though he had no hesitation about sleeping with other women and maintains a separate residence. De'Londa uses his last name although they are not married.

Season 1

In 2002, Wee-Bey was the primary and trusted enforcer of the Barksdale Organization and second-in-command to Russell "Stringer" Bell. He was pulled over by Detectives Hauk and Carver, who seized $20,000 of Barksdale's money from the car.

Wee-Bey was involved in two different gun fights with legendary stick-up man Omar Little, after torturing and murdering Omar's partner Brandon.

Wee-Bey was shot in the leg by Omar. ("The Wire")

Wee-bey later defended Avon against Omar, shooting him in the shoulder and forcing his retreat ("Game Day")

Wee-Bey was also linked to the body of a dancer from Orlando's strip club, the Barksdales' legitimate business front. While he did not kill her, he took no action to prevent her death from overdose after raping her at a party. His callous disposal of her body sways another stripper, Shardene, to give information to the police, beginning the collapse of the Barksdale criminal empire.

Wee-Bey's eventual downfall came when he and Little Man kill Orlando because he was working as a police informant. During the incident, Little Man shoots Detective Greggs, who was undercover. Stringer ordered Wee-Bey to murder Nakeesha Lyles and Wintell Royce. ("Cleaning Up")

D'Angelo Barksdale was responsible for driving Wee-Bey to Philadelphia. After D'Angelo was arrested, he provided the location of Brice to the police information concerning Wee-Bey's murder of Deirdre Kresson. After his arrest, Wee-Bey confessed to the murders of Nakeesha Lyles, Wintell Royce, and others, including some he did not commit, such as William Gant.

Season 2

Wee-Bey was sentenced to life without parole in Maryland House of Correction. He continued to keep fish and enjoyed an easy life due to Barksdale's protection. A guard named Dwight Tilghman harassed him because he confessed to murdering a relative of Tilghman's, which Avon swiftly resolved. Later, after D'Angelo's murder, Wee-Bey assured Avon that D'Angelo's death was not his fault.

Season 3

Wee-Bey appeared to help Avon approach legendary prisoner Dennis "Cutty" Wise and offer him a position within their organization. Both Wise and Avon were paroled, leaving Wee-Bey to serve his time without them.

Season 4

Wee-Bey's son Namond Brice became involved with the drug trade, working with Preston Broadus. Namond was responsible for Wee-Bey's fish at home. Ultimately, he allowed his son to move in with Howard Colvin, hoping he could live a life that Wee-Bey never had the chance to. Wee-Bey ordered De'Londa to follow his lead, as his word will reach her wherever she goes.

Season 5

He appeared one final time in the jail yard of Maryland House of Correction conversing with Christopher Partlow. While the Barksdale and Stanfield organizations were bitter enemies on the street, Wee-Bey and Chris have perhaps found common ground since both served a similar top enforcer role in each organization, and both are serving life sentences for taking sole responsibility for multiple murders to protect their respective bosses.

Kill count

Personal

• Maurice Scroggins: . (2001)
• Deirdre Kresson: Shot through a kitchen window with the help of D'Angelo. (2001)
• Toreen Boyd: Murdered through unknown reasons prior to the start of the series. (2001 - 2002)
• Roland Leggett: . (2002)
• Wendell "Orlando" Blocker: Shot to death for cooperating with the feds. (2002)
• Wintell "Little Man" Royce: On the orders from Russell Bell to kill him. (2002)
• Nakeesha Lyles: Shot to death for testifying against D'Angelo. (2002)

Production

Appearances

Season 1
"The Target"	"The Detail"	"The Buys"	"Old Cases"	"The Pager"
The Wire"	"One Arrest"	"Lessons"	"Game Day"	"The Cost"
"The Hunt"	"Cleaning Up"	"Sentencing"

Season 2
"Ebb Tide"	"Collateral Damage"	"Hot Shots"	"Hard Cases"	"Undertow"
"All Prologue"	"Backwash"	"Duck and Cover"	"Stray Rounds"	"Storm Warnings"
"Bad Dreams"	"Port in a Storm"

Season 3
"Time after Time"	"All Due Respect"	"Dead Soldiers"	"Amsterdam"	"Straight and True"
"Homecoming"	"Back Burners"	"Moral Midgetry"	"Slapstick"	"Reformation"
"Middle Ground"	"Mission Accomplished"

Season 4
"Boys of Summer"	"Soft Eyes"	"Home Rooms"	"Refugees"	"Alliances"
"Margin of Error"	"Unto Others"	"Corner Boys"	"Know Your Place"	"Misgivings"
"A New Day"	"That's Got His Own"	"Final Grades"

Season 5
"More with Less"	"Unconfirmed Reports"	"Not for Attribution"	"Transitions"	"React Quotes"
"The Dickensian Aspect"	"Took"	"Clarifications"	"Late Editions"	"-30-"

Notes

• Ed Burns investigated multiple narcotics traffickers in the 1980s. One was a heroin dealer named Thomas H. Taylor, whose partner, Vernon Allen Collins, went by "Bey-Brother". Collins is mentioned in Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets as one of Baltimore's notorious contract killers in the late 1970s. He was arrested in 1987 and sentenced to thirty-five years in prison. As of 2020 he is incarcerated at New Jersey State Prison, and occasionally lodges appeals against his various convictions.