What role did Diane Neal play on NCIS? Everything to know about her character

The long-running military police procedural television series, NCIS (Naval Criminal Investigative Service), continues to win hearts with storylines focusing on crimes involving the Navy or Marine Corps.

On NCIS, Diane Neal played Special Agent Abigail "Abby" Borin, a skilled Coast Guard Investigative Service (CGIS) investigator. She was known for her straightforwardness and Coast Guard case expertise.

Her character was popular, often playing an outstanding counterpart to NCIS agents, especially Gibbs. Neal always appeared in cases with complex, overlapping Coast Guard and NCIS jurisdictions, making her presence crucial to solving the crime.

Abigail Borin: The Coast Guard’s Special Agent in NCIS

The Coast Guard Special Agent Abigail "Abby" Borin on NCIS also appeared in NCIS: New Orleans. Borin is determined, blunt, and knowledgeable about all Coast Guard matters. The NCIS team, especially Supervisory Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs, took to her quickly.

Borin has a tough and resilient past. Born in a small Ohio town, she attended Chaminade-Julienne High School in Dayton as an only child. Softball was her college sport. Most importantly, Borin was a Marine Corps Sergeant (E-5) in Iraq before joining CGIS. She lost her partner, which devastated her and led her to retire from the Marines. After leaving the Marine Corps, she joined CGIS and became a team leader.

Borin's Role in the Storyline

Abigail Borin always appears in NCIS cases where the NCIS and CGIS have interfering jurisdictions, requiring joint investigations. Her debut was in Season 7's Jurisdiction (2010), where NCIS and CGIS disputed a case. Borin and her probie resolved the issue with the NCIS team, proving her competence and cooperation.

She returned in Season 8's Ships in the Night. She became personally involved in the case because she was the last person to see the deceased marine, Jeremy Nolan, alive on a boat on a blind date. She was an important witness and helped the team solve the murder.

In Season 9, Borin made her fourth appearance in Safe Harbor. After a Coast Guard officer was shot and killed while inspecting a mysterious ship at night, this case became a complex joint investigation. Borin found evidence of a possible terrorist attack to destroy half of Norfolk Naval Base, which escalated the situation. Borin added humour to her character by helping Tony, McGee, and Ziva find Gibbs a date while tracking the threat.

The collaboration continued in Season 10's Lost at Sea. Three helicopter crew members washed ashore, prompting Borin and NCIS to investigate. After the missing pilot was found dead from a gunshot wound, the teams used their resources and expertise to determine the motive.

Season 11's Oil and Water required her expertise again. A suspicious oil rig explosion that killed a Marine sparked this investigation. Borin and the NCIS team investigated the explosion and a mysterious prankster targeting them.

Borin made his seventh and final appearance in Season 12's "The San Dominick". Gibbs and Borin found a dead man overboard during a Coast Guard-NCIS training exercise at sea. He was a missing San Dominick crew member. When Gibbs boarded the ship and found pirates in control, the joint investigation intensified, but the situation was more complicated than expected and required their full cooperation.

Everything to Know About the Actress: Diane Neal

On November 17, 1976, American-Israeli actress Diane Neal was born. Despite her fame as Coast Guard Investigative Service (CGIS) Special Agent Abigail Borin in NCIS, she is best known for a long-running crime drama role.

Neal is best known for playing New York Assistant District Attorney Casey Novak in Law & Order: Special Victims Unit from 2003 to 2012. Her first Law & Order: Special Victims Unit guest appearance was as a rapist in Season 3's Ridicule. After Stephanie March left, she played Assistant District Attorney Casey Novak in the fifth season.

Novak left the show after being censured by the New York State Bar in Season 9. In Season 12, Neal reprised her role as Novak in Reparations, returning as the temporary Assistant District Attorney for the Special Victims Unit. She became a recurring character in Season 13, last appearing on Valentine's Day. Neal told TV Guide that Season 13 was,
 

"back on track to what the original SVU was intended to be, which is about sex crimes and crimes against children, it's got more of a nitty-gritty feel."

She also said her and March's return gave viewers familiarity after Chris Meloni left, suggesting they should be "in the court room together!" Neal played Peggy Sue Thomas in the 2021 Lifetime film Circle of Deception in addition to her recurring roles.

NCIS episodes are available to stream on CBS.