5 Times Gibbs Broke His Own Rules On NCIS
Beginning in 2003, Mark Harman guided audiences through the world of naval special investigations as Leroy Jethro Gibbs on the CBS crime show “NCIS.” In a vast world of procedural crime dramas, “NCIS” stands out with its focus on crimes involving the Navy and Marine Corps, as the acronym stands for Naval Criminal Investigative Services. There’s a reason it’s still one of the most streamed TV shows of 2026. For 18 full seasons, Gibbs led his team through events like terrorist explosions, and the murder of their director. His competence and talent as a leading military investigator was largely owed to the set of personal rules Gibbs holds both his team and himself to. As the saying goes, however, rules were made to be broken.
For all his strengths and virtues, Gibbs was not always able to follow the rules that helped shape his personality. Sometimes he had to break them to solve the case, while other times it was more personal. Regardless of his reasons for doing so, there were at least five times Gibbs broke his own rules.
Rule #1: Never let suspects stay together (Season 8, Episode 11)
Mark Harmon, Sean Murray, and Diane Neal in NCIS.
CBS
In Season 8’s “Ships in the Night,” The team is investigating the murder of a Marine officer whose family operated a radar company. The victim’s sister Kimberly Nolan (Tiffany Dupont), their family lawyer Wayne Grossman (Roark Critchlow), and the company CFO Tom Adams (Patch Darragh) are Gibbs’ suspects. He decides to break his first rule by placing the three suspects together in a conference room. After cleverly exposing a bullet graze wound on Kimberly’s arm, she breaks down and claims the other two forced her to lead her brother to his death. This prompts all of them to turn on each other, culminating in Wayne pulling out an audio recording of Tom and Kimberly conspiring to commit the crime.
By actively breaking his own rule about placing suspects together, Gibbs forces so much pressure on them that he gains a confession, enabling him to close the case. Fortunately, this is a positive example of his disregard to his own system, which has defined his character since the beginning of the series.
Rule #10: Never get personally involved in a case (Season 16, Episode 20)
Gibbs speaking with his team at the office during a scene in “NCIS.”
CBS
In the 20th episode of Season 16, the bones of Gibbs’ ex-fiancé Ellen Wallace (Erin Cummings) are found inside a Marine Corps uniform by a construction crew. It was previously believed that Wallace died during the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Blood on the uniform gets matched with Gibbs, who claims that she had simply cleaned up a cut he sustained with her uniform. Because of this history, he is removed from the case.
Gibbs’ rule-breaking is not just ex post facto, however. After being removed from the case, he goes against Rule #10 by still pursuing the case against direct orders. This does pay off, and with his team’s help they discover his ex’s killer was a Marine general named Daniel Kent (Doug Savant). He killed Wallace to hide his involvement in a military coverup that she was investigating. He confesses to the murder, ensuring both justice and closure for Gibbs.
Rule #4: The best way to keep a secret? Keep it to yourself (Season 16, Episode 22)
Ellie Bishop, Nicholas Torres, and Timothy McGee at a bowling alley during a scene in “NCIS.”
CBS
You don’t need to be a naval special investigator to know that everyone has secrets, and sometimes they are hard to keep. Despite his strong qualities, Gibbs is no exception to that. Prior to the series, Gibbs shot and killed drug cartel member Pedro Hernandez (Thomas Rosales Jr.) out of revenge for murdering his daughter Kelly and wife Shannon after the latter was set to testify against him. Losing them caused the greatest pain in his life, which is the depressing reason Gibbs never locks his front door: He has nothing else to lose.
In Season 16’s “… and Executioner,” he reveals to Ellie Bishop (Emily Wickersham), Nick Torres (Wilmer Valderrama), and Tim Mcgee (Sean Murray) that he killed Hernandez. In the next episode “Lost Time,” he acknowledges his rule-breaking to his former therapist Grace Confalone (Laura San Giacomo) over drinks.
The rule states that if you have to tell your secret, you should only “tell one other person,” while Gibbs clearly revealed the truth to four others in total. Breaking the fourth rule showcased Gibbs’ vulnerable side. The weight of the secret, and the burden of revealing it, affected both him and the team.
Rule #12: Never date a co-worker (Season 3, Episode 1)
Jennifer Shepard and Ziva David speak with Gibbs during a scene in “NCIS.”
CBS
In another case of ex post facto, Gibbs had a brief relationship with NCIS director Jennifer Shepard (Lauren Holly) years ago when they were partnered for a secret mission in Europe. This is revealed in the Season 3 opener “Kill Ari: Part 1,” after Gibbs assures Shepard (now his new superior) that their romantic history won’t interfere with work.
While the two never reconnect romantically, their lingering feelings are obvious. Despite emotional and professional tension, they remain effective colleagues until Shepard’s death in Season 5 when she is ambushed by a team of assassins. What makes this even more devastating is how she confides with Michael Franks (Muse Watson) before her death that she still has feelings for Gibbs.
In the prequel series “NCIS: Origins,” a younger Gibbs (Austin Stowell) has a romantic relationship with colleague Lala Dominguez (Mariel Molino), once again breaking his own rule.
Rule #3: Never be unreachable (Season 16, Episode 23)
Gibbs and Grace Confalone at the bar during a scene in “NCIS.”
CBS
One of Gibbs’ most defining qualities is his commitment to the job. To his team, he is a dedicated and protective leader, but even the greats need some time to themselves every once in a while. This is the case in Season 16’s “Lost Time.”
In the previous episode, Gibbs revealed to the team that he murdered Pedro Hernandez for killing his family, breaking the fourth rule of his book. Unable to deal with his personal demons from both the secret and revealing it, he decides to break the third rule by abandoning the crime scene of a murdered gunnery sergeant. He goes to a bar, and when Ellie Bishop calls him when he’s not in the office, Gibbs simply declines the call.
Gibbs ignoring the call shows just how affected he is by the ordeal. His decision to do that, as well as to leave the team for the bar, is not for the betterment of the case. He does those purely for his own sake. This is one of the few times Gibbs breaks the rules for himself and not for a case.
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