Captain María Esperanza di Alma LaGuerta (/ləˈɡwɛərtə/ or /ləˈɡwɜːrtə/; Spanish: María LaGüerta) portrayed by Lauren Vélez, is a fictional character who is the Lieutenant at the fictitious Miami-Metro Homicide Department in the Showtime television series Dexter. Despite being a protagonist for most of the series, Maria LaGuerta, (the superior officer of main characters Dexter and Debra Morgan) ultimately emerges as one of the story's main antagonists by Season 7.