Abbie Carmichael
| Abbie Carmichael | |
|---|---|
| Law & Order character | |
 |
|
| First appearance | "Cherished" (L&O) "Payback" (SVU) |
| Last appearance | "Deep Vote" (L&O) "Entitled" (SVU) |
| Portrayed by | Angie Harmon |
| Time on show | 1998–2001 (L&O) 1999–2000 (SVU) |
| Seasons |
9, 10, 11 (L&O) 1 (SVU) |
| Credited appearances | 72 (L&O) 6 (SVU) 78 (total) |
| Preceded by | Jamie Ross |
| Succeeded by |
Serena Southerlyn (L&O) Alexandra Cabot (SVU) |
Abigail "Abbie" Carmichael is a fictional character on the TV drama Law & Order created by René Balcer and portrayed by model/actress Angie Harmon. The character was regularly featured from 1998 to 2001. She appeared in 78 episodes (72 episodes in Law & Order, and 7 episodes in Law & Order: Special Victims Unit).
Abbie Carmichael is introduced in the episode "Cherished", having transferred from the Narcotics Bureau to replace Jamie Ross (Carey Lowell) as Jack McCoy's (Sam Waterston) assistant in the New York County DA's office. The series reveals that she is from Dallas and attended the University of Texas, where she was on the track team.
Carmichael is characterized as a staunch political conservative: She is pro-life, opposes gun control, favors the death penalty, and has no faith in criminal rehabilitation programs. These political beliefs often put her in conflict with McCoy and DAs Adam Schiff (Steven Hill) and Nora Lewin (Dianne Wiest), all of whom are of a more liberal stripe.
Certain cases affect her worldview, however. During one case (Season 9, Episode 8 "Punk"), she prosecutes an incarcerated woman who had murdered a corrections officer she claims had forced her into a sexual relationship. Carmichael, who had prosecuted the woman before on a drug charge, has no sympathy for her and seems hell-bent on putting her in prison for life — until she cross-examines the woman, who reveals that she blames herself for being raped. This strikes a chord in Carmichael, who suddenly arranges a lenient plea bargain for the woman. Carmichael later reveals to McCoy that she had been raped as a freshman in college by a third-year law student she had been dating, and had for years blamed herself. In another case, her friend and fellow ADA, Toni Ricci, is murdered by the Russian mobsters she was prosecuting. It is the only time that she lets anyone in the DA's office see her cry.
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Wikipedia