When “CSI” ended last season, the fate of lab tech Sara Sidle was up in the air, both on and off the screen. Viewers were left wondering whether the character would survive, especially since the actress that plays her, Jorja Fox, had not yet renewed her contract. According to Entertainment Weekly, Fox finally made up her mind and will leave the hit show by the end of the year.

Fox will continue to star as her character until the end of 2007, after which she will exit the show. It seems like both sides compromised. CBS didn’t kill her off and Fox gets to cash in on the show for a little longer.

Obviously, producers left the story open depending on how contract negotiations developed. Last season’s cliff-hanger saw Sara trapped under a car in the middle of the desert, no thanks to the diabolical Miniature Killer. If you watched last week’s season premiere (and don’t read any further if you haven’t), the team finally found Sara dehydrated and barely alive. At the end of the episode, a clearly distraught Grissom holds her hand as she opens her eyes.

Too bad Fox didn’t want to stick around. The show actually beat “Grey’s Anatomy” last week in total viewers.