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ISCR Case 23-00458 — CASE

Case record

ISCR Case 23-00458

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

Case Profile
Decision Date1/11/2024
Statusdenied
LevelHEARING
TypeSTANDARD ISCR
Participants
Applicant Representation: Pro Se
Judge: Roger C. Wesley
Government Counsel: Dan O'Reilly
Case Summary
The applicant in this case was a 29-year-old employee of a defense contractor seeking a security clearance. The Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency (DCSA) issued a Statement of Reasons (SOR) citing concerns under the financial considerations and drug involvement guidelines. The core allegations included the applicant's failure to file federal and state income tax returns for multiple years and the accumulation of delinquent debts exceeding $1,500. Additionally, the applicant was accused of using marijuana from June 2013 until March 2022.
In his response to the SOR, the applicant admitted to the allegations but claimed he was unaware of how to file his tax returns and intended to resolve his tax issues in 2023. He also stated that he was saving to pay off his debts. However, he did not provide any documentation to support his claims, such as evidence of tax filings or payment plans for his debts. The applicant's inconsistent accounts regarding his marijuana use raised further concerns about his reliability.
The administrative judge ruled against the applicant, concluding that he did not mitigate the financial concerns or demonstrate sufficient rehabilitation regarding his drug use. The judge emphasized that the applicant's failure to provide evidence of addressing his financial obligations and the lack of clarity regarding his past drug use indicated a potential risk to national security. Consequently, the applicant's eligibility for access to classified information was denied.
Guidelines Evaluated
- Guideline FFinancial Considerations · Against Applicant
- Guideline HDrug Involvement & Substance Misuse · Against Applicant
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Case Headnote

ISCR Case No. 23-00458

deniedJan 11, 2024· Hon. Roger C. Wesley· hearing

Summary

A 29-year-old defense contractor was denied a security clearance due to concerns under Guideline F (Financial Considerations) and Guideline H (Drug Involvement). The applicant failed to file federal and state A income tax returns for tax years 2017 through 2021, and state B income tax returns for 2019 through 2021. Additionally, he accumulated three delinquent consumer debts, each exceeding $1,500.

Regarding drug involvement, the applicant admitted to using marijuana with varying frequency from approximately June 2013 until at least March 2022. These issues collectively raised disqualifying conditions related to financial irresponsibility and drug use.

Despite the applicant admitting to the allegations and stating an intent to resolve his financial issues, the judge found insufficient evidence of mitigation. The unresolved tax obligations, delinquent debts, and history of marijuana use led to significant trustworthiness concerns, resulting in the denial of his security clearance.

Why the Applicant Was Denied

The applicant failed to file federal and state tax returns for multiple years, resulting in significant back taxes owed.
The applicant accumulated delinquent debts exceeding $1,500, which he did not adequately address or resolve.
The applicant's history of marijuana use raised concerns about his reliability and judgment.

Conditions Referenced

Disqualifying

DC ¶ 19(a)appliedInability to Satisfy Debts
DC ¶ 19(c)appliedA History of Not Meeting Financial Obligations
DC ¶ 19(f)appliedFailure to File or Fraudulently Filing Annual Federal, State, or Local Income Tax Returns, or Failure to Pay Annual Federal, State, or Local Income Tax as Required
DC ¶ 25(a)appliedAny Substance Misuse
DC ¶ 25(c)appliedIllegal Possession of a Controlled Substance

Key Rule Quoted

“Eligibility for access to classified information may only be granted "upon a finding that it is clearly consistent with the national interest to do so."”
— Exec. Or. 10865, Safeguarding Classified Information within Industry § 2 (Feb. 20, 1960), as amended.

Procedural Posture

SOR issuedMar 28, 2023
Answer filedJun 13, 2023Requested resolution on the written record.
Hearing held—
Decision dateJan 11, 2024

Cite For

Failure to Mitigate Financial Concerns Under Guideline F
History of Marijuana Use Impacting Security Clearance Under Guideline H
Insufficient Evidence of Rehabilitation or Resolution of Financial Issues.

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 F · descriptive summary of a decided case

Posture: Decision on RecordDecided: denied

The judge found against the applicant on the allegations of failing to file federal and state income tax returns for multiple years, as well as on the failure to file state income tax returns. However, the judge ruled in favor of the applicant regarding the accumulation of three delinquent consumer debts exceeding $1,500, acknowledging the applicant's claims of being in the process of addressing these debts.

¶	Allegation	Finding	Type	Response	Disqualifying (¶19)	Mitigating applied (¶20)	Mitigation
1.a	failed to file his federal and state A tax income tax returns, as required, for tax years 2017 through 2021	Against Applicant	Tax Filing Failure	Admitted	(a) inability to satisfy debts (b) unwillingness to satisfy debts regardless of ability	—	Claimed Other
1.b	failed to file his state B income tax returns, as required, for tax years 2019 through 2021	Against Applicant	Tax Filing Failure	Admitted	(a) inability to satisfy debts (b) unwillingness to satisfy debts regardless of ability	—	Claimed Other
1.c	accumulated three delinquent consumer debts exceeding $1,500	For Applicant	Unspecified Financial	Admitted	—	—	Claimed Other

Descriptive standardized rendering of a decided public case (Guideline F). 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 marijuana with varying frequency from about June 2013 until at least March 2022. The applicant admitted to the allegation, but the judge concluded that the drug involvement raised security concerns that were not mitigated, resulting in a denial of eligibility for access to classified information.

¶	Allegation	Finding	Substance / event	Use level	Response	Disqualifying (¶25)	Mitigating applied (¶26)	Mitigation
1.a	used marijuana with varying frequency from about June 2013 until at least March 2022	Against Applicant	Marijuana	Unspecified	Admitted	—	—	—

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.