The news of the first death comes in Episode 7 (which brings the
NCIS world into pandemic times): Medical examiner Dr. Jimmy Palmer (Brian Dietzen) lost his wife, Breena (Michelle Pierce), to COVID. Not only is he now a single parent, he couldn’t say goodbye to her due to pandemic restrictions. The team instead gathers to help Palmer say his farewell a letter he’s written to his wife, which he reads out loud.
In the very next episode, Maria Bello‘s character, forensic psychologist Jack Sloane, exits the series. She lives (thankfully), but after going to Afghanistan to help a woman who helped