Ro has led an extremely tragic life which has unfortunately burdened her intelligence, heroism and courage as a potential officer with a troubled, unstable career and personal life. Only some five years after her Academy graduation, Captain Jean-Luc Picard felt she would have attained lieutenant commander's rank if not for her court-martial.

Ro was made to watch her father be tortured to death by the occupying Cardassians at age 7; when she was presumed dead circa Stardate 45892.4, her captain did not know of any other surviving family. She ran away from the camps sometime soon after her father's death so she would not grow up.

As a sign of her inner strength and drive, Ro was able to overcome her tortuous childhood and won sponsorship as part of the stricter admission requirements of a non-Federation citizen to Starfleet Academy, graduating within the regular four-year curriculum with at least one class in botany that she later felt embarrassed by.

Within three years, Ro was court-martialed for an incident on Garon II while aboard the U.S.S. Wellington in which she "didn't follow orders" and eight away team members died, although she never defended herself at the trial.

Ro was pardoned on Stardate 45077.1 from her resulting prison term on Jaros II by Admiral Kennelly, who needed her to offer arms and lure into the open the Bajoran resistance leader Orta, wrongly blamed for a raid on a Federation colony. The Cardassians themselves staged the strike to dupe Kennelly into helping them get Orta, but a tortured Ro revealed the deception at Guinan's urging and planned the ruse to reveal them all, with Picard's blessing.

After returning from a grueling year in 2370 at Starfleet's Advanced Tactical Training under Lt. Commander Chakotay and promoted to lieutenant, she followed her heart guiltily and joined the Maquis after a covert operation among them near Ronara Prime. It was reported her greatest sense of regret for that decision was in reneging on the trust Captain Picard had shown in her.
 

MICHELLE FORBES

After appearing in "Star Trek: Next Generation" as Ro Laren, Michelle Forbes was approached to play the same character on Star Trek Deep Space 9. When Forbes turned down the part, because she didn't want to commit to a regular TV role at that point in her career, a new Bajoran character, Kira Nerys, was created and Nana Visitor was cast in that part.

Prior to introducing the character of Ensign Ro Laren she appeared in a small guest part as the daughter of Dr. Timicin, played by David Ogden Stiers.

Forbes moved to New York at the age of 16 to make it as an actress.

Biographies derived and edited from the Official Site and IMDB.