Stella is a half-Greek, half-Italian orphan (yet identifies more with being Greek than Italian) who grew up at St. Basil's Orphanage. She left when she was eighteen. Her parents remain unknown at this time. Mac teases her about just "knowing all that stuff," but most of what she knows about her Greek heritage she learned from a book. She can speak some Italian, but the level of her fluency is unknown.
She is absolutely devoted to her job due to her strong personality, determination and intelligence. She is very close to Mac, since they co-head the lab, and constantly worries about his physical and mental well-being.
Stella was held captive in her own home by her unstable boyfriend, Frankie Mala, and was forced to kill him. Because of her close relationship with Mac, she was mistakenly thought to be Mac's late wife, Claire, by Reed Garrett, a child that Claire had given birth to and put up for adoption before she had met Mac.
In a season three episode Stella comes in contact with HIV positive blood. After waiting several months for the test results, Stella discovers she is HIV-negative using a viral PCR test administered by Adam Ross in the CSI New York lab.
