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Director Highsmith was the leader of the Hesguard Institute some time in the 53rd century.
She oversaw the research into and implementation of the Institute's "Bad Wolf" process, an experimental procedure intended to rehabilitate criminals held at the facility; which was formally known as the Stormcage Containment Facility. The process would artificially remove their negative emotions, such as anger, hatred and fear, and place them within an artificial being known as a Sin-eater. The theory was that, without their negative emotions and impulses, the patients would be unable to commit further crimes and could thus be rehabilitated and released back into society. Unfortunately, the theory was incorrect.
The Ninth Doctor discovered that the released criminals eventually suffered a psychotic break and went on to commit worse atrocities. He then decided on a plan to infiltrate the facility to discover the details of their process. He falsified evidence that he had murdered his companion, Tara Mishra. In fact, Tara infiltrated the facility as one of the guards, while Rose Tyler would pose as a Earth Examiner on a surprise inspection.
Highsmith was instantly suspicious of Rose's story, although she was obliged to defer to her due to the authority that Rose's assumed identity conferred. She took Rose to see the captured Doctor, and left her alone with him, despite objecting that he was too dangerous. Highsmith privately instructed one of her staff to verify that Rose was who she said she was and discovered no records of a examiner by that name.
Highsmith ordered the Doctor to be subjected to the procedure, over Rose's objections, transferring his "dark side" to Receptacle SE-280. Unfortunately, this had a disastrous unexpected effect on the sin-eater, due to the Doctor's unique Time Lord physiology. Though created as a non-sentient receptacle, the Doctor's mind granted it a form of sentience, and it, in turn, granted sentience to the other sin-eaters, turning them into powerful and monstrous creatures, driven solely by the dark emotions created them.
The sin eaters went on a rampage, killing many of the base's personnel. Highsmith stubbornly blamed the Doctor for the destruction until he showed her the evidence that he had gathered in the future of two patents, who had not yet been released, committing even worse crimes due to the side effects of the flawed process. Helping the Doctor's case was the revelation that Tara was indeed alive, negating the Doctor's alleged crime.
Highsmith eventually consented to the Doctor's plan to destroy the institute and the sin-eaters with it, however she was killed by one of her own creations before he was enable to enact it. (COMIC: Sin-Eaters)