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ISCR Case 20-01873 — CASE

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ISCR Case 20-01873

A decided public DOHA case, shown for research — not advice or a prediction.

Case Profile
Decision Date4/14/2021
Statusdenied
LevelHEARING
TypeSTANDARD ISCR
Participants
Applicant Representation: Pro Se
Judge: Elizabeth M. Matchinski
Government Counsel: Eric C. Price
Case Summary
The applicant in this case was a 57-year-old defense contractor who sought a security clearance but faced allegations under Guideline H (drug involvement and substance misuse) and Guideline G (alcohol consumption). The Statement of Reasons indicated that he used marijuana and THC oil approximately ten times a month from June to December 2018, while holding a security clearance, and was arrested in December 2018 for drug possession and driving while intoxicated (DWI).
The applicant admitted to the allegations in his response to the Statement of Reasons, acknowledging his drug use and the circumstances surrounding his DWI arrest. He reported that he had not used THC since December 2018 and expressed no intention to do so in the future. However, the administrative judge found that the applicant had not sufficiently demonstrated reform regarding his substance misuse or alcohol consumption, particularly given his ongoing legal issues, including a deferred adjudication for drug possession and an unclear status regarding the DWI charge.
Ultimately, the administrative judge ruled to deny the applicant's security clearance. The decision emphasized that the applicant's illegal drug use and associated legal troubles raised significant concerns about his reliability and trustworthiness, which were not mitigated by his claims of reform or future intentions. The judge concluded that granting clearance would not be clearly consistent with the national interest.
Guidelines Evaluated
- Guideline GAlcohol Consumption · Against Applicant
- Guideline HDrug Involvement & Substance Misuse · Against Applicant
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Case Headnote

ISCR Case No. 20-01873

deniedApr 14, 2021· Hon. Elizabeth M. Matchinski· hearing

Summary

A 57-year-old defense contractor was denied security clearance due to concerns under Guideline G (Alcohol Consumption) and Guideline H (Drug Involvement). The applicant admitted to using THC extract oil and cannabis approximately ten times a month each from June to December 2018, during which time he held a security clearance.

In December 2018, the applicant was arrested and charged with both driving while intoxicated (DWI) and felony possession of a controlled substance. These actions raised disqualifying conditions related to alcohol consumption and drug involvement.

While mitigating conditions were considered, the judge ultimately found insufficient evidence of rehabilitation or mitigation of the security concerns. The applicant's admitted illegal drug use while holding a clearance, coupled with the felony possession and DWI charges, led to the denial of his eligibility for access to classified information.

Why the Applicant Was Denied

The applicant admitted to illegal drug use while holding a security clearance.
He was charged with felony possession of a controlled substance and DWI.
Insufficient evidence of rehabilitation or mitigation of security concerns was presented.

Conditions Referenced

Disqualifying

AG ¶ 25(a)raisedAny Substance Misuse
AG ¶ 25(c)raisedIllegal Possession of a Controlled Substance
AG ¶ 25(f)raisedIllegal Drug Use While Granted Access to Classified Information
AG ¶ 22(a)raisedAlcohol-related Incidents

Mitigating

AG ¶ 23(a)rejectedBehavior Was Infrequent or Unlikely to RecurThe applicant's drug use was recent and frequent.
AG ¶ 23(b)rejectedAcknowledgment of Alcohol Use and Evidence of Actions TakenThe applicant did not provide sufficient evidence of rehabilitation.

Key Rule Quoted

“No one has a ‘right’ to a security clearance.”
— Department of Navy v. Egan, 484 U.S. 518, 528 (1988)

Procedural Posture

SOR issuedNov 2, 2020
Answer filednullApplicant admitted allegations without comment.
Hearing heldnullDecision made based on written record.
Decision dateApr 14, 2021

Cite For

Denial of Security Clearance Due to Illegal Drug Use Under Guideline H
Insufficient Evidence of Rehabilitation for Alcohol Consumption Under Guideline G
Impact of Recent Criminal Charges on Security Clearance Eligibility

Editorial summary generated for research. Not legal advice; not a prediction. Verify against the full decision before relying on any quoted language.

Standardized Decision Profile

SEAD-4 Guideline G (Alcohol Consumption) · descriptive summary of a decided case

Posture: Decision on RecordDecided: denied

The judge found against the applicant regarding the allegation of driving while intoxicated (DWI) in December 2018. The applicant admitted to the DWI charge, which included a blood-alcohol level of .12% at the time of arrest. The judge concluded that the applicant's alcohol-related conduct was inconsistent with the national interest, resulting in a denial of the security clearance.

¶	Allegation	Finding	Incident	Response	Disqualifying (¶22)	Mitigating applied (¶23)	Mitigation
2.a	Applicant was arrested in December 2018 and charged with driving while intoxicated (DWI).	Against Applicant	DUI or DWI Alcohol	Admitted	—	—	—

Descriptive standardized rendering of a decided public case (Guideline G). The verbatim source decision is shown in full below.

Standardized Decision Profile

SEAD-4 Guideline H (Drug Involvement) · descriptive summary of a decided case

Posture: Decision on RecordDecided: denied

The judge found that the applicant used THC extract oil and cannabis approximately ten times a month from June 2018 to December 2018 while holding a security clearance. Additionally, the applicant was arrested in December 2018 and charged with felony possession of a controlled substance. The judge ruled against the applicant on both allegations under Guideline H, concluding that the applicant's drug involvement was inconsistent with national security interests.

¶	Allegation	Finding	Substance / event	Use level	Response	Disqualifying (¶25)	Mitigating applied (¶26)	Mitigation
1.a	Applicant used THC extract oil and cannabis approximately ten times a month each from June 2018 to about December 2018 while granted access to classified information.	Against Applicant	MarijuanaWHILE CLEARED	Frequent	Admitted	(a) any substance misuse (c) illegal possession, cultivation, manufacture, purchase, sale, or distribution; or paraphernalia	—	—
1.b	Applicant was arrested in December 2018 and charged with felony possession of a controlled substance.	Against Applicant	Drug Distribution or DealingWHILE CLEARED	Not Applicable	Admitted	(a) any substance misuse (c) illegal possession, cultivation, manufacture, purchase, sale, or distribution; or paraphernalia	—	—

Descriptive standardized rendering of a decided public case (Guideline H). The verbatim source decision is shown in full below.

Full decision

The complete, official text — footnotes and signatures included — is in the original PDF.