Aaron Hotchner is a fictional character from the CBS crime drama Criminal Minds, portrayed by Thomas Gibson. He is a Supervisory Special Agent and the unit chief of the FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit, and has appeared from the series' pilot episode "Extreme Aggressor", which was originally broadcast on September 22, 2005. Hotch begins the series married to his high school sweetheart Haley. They have a son named Jack, though they later divorced over Hotch's dedication to his job. Meredith Monroe's character Haley was later killed in season five by serial killer George Foyet. Two years after Haley's death, he met triathlon runner Beth Clemmons, and has been in a relationship with her.