Laura Chinchilla

She married Mario Alberto Madrigal Díaz on January 23, 1982. They divorced on May 22, 1985.

In 1996, she had a son, José María Rico Chinchilla, with José María Rico Cueto, a Spanish lawyer who also holds Canadian citizenship. They were wed on March 26, 2000.

The eldest of four children, she was born in Carmen Central, San Jose, Costa Rica, on March 28, 1959 to a middle-class Roman Catholic family. Her parents, Rafael Ángel Chinchilla Fallas and Emilce Miranda Castillo had long been involved in national politics. Her father was a former Comptroller General of the Republic in the 1970s and 1980s.

She graduated from the University of Costa Rica with a bachelor's degree in political science in 1981. In 1989, she received her master's degree in public policy from Georgetown University in Washington, D.C.

In 1990, Laura Chinchilla began her career as a consultant specializing in judicial and public security reform in Latin America and Africa for various international agencies.

She conducted assessments for U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), coordinated the studies and projects on judicial reform for the United Nations Program for Development (UNDP), and evaluated and advised the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) on police reforms.

She delivered many lectures at international forums on matters of public security and police reforms and was a part of many reform initiatives throughout Latin America, such as the Project Advisory Committee of Civil Society and Public Safety for the Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA), and the Foundation for Peace and Democracy (FUNPADEM).

From 1994-1996, she worked in public sector management as Deputy Minister of Public Security under President José María Figueres Olsen of the National Liberation Party. This was her first public office position.

In 1996, Chinchilla was promoted as Minister of Public Safety. She held that post for two years. She served as Chair of the National Immigration Council and Chairman of the Joint Drug Intelligence Center. Additionally, she was a member of the National Drug Council, National Security Council, and Academic Council of the National Police Academy.

Laura Chinchilla has written books, monographs, and articles in Spanish and English on many subjects, including the administration of justice, public safety, and police reforms.