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ISCR Case 23-00479 — CASE

Case record

ISCR Case 23-00479

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

Case Profile
Decision Date11/26/2024
Statusdenied
LevelHEARING
TypeSTANDARD ISCR
Participants
Applicant Representation: Pro Se
Judge: David M. White
Government Counsel: Karen Moreno-Sales
Case Summary
The applicant in this case was a 39-year-old Senior Consultant with a major defense contractor, seeking a security clearance. The Department of Defense issued a Statement of Reasons (SOR) citing security concerns under the Financial Considerations guideline (Guideline F). The core allegations included the applicant's failure to satisfy a significant mortgage debt, which resulted in a foreclosure and a deficiency judgment against him for $153,221.
The applicant admitted to cosigning for the mortgage loans but denied that the financial concerns applied to him. He acknowledged that he had not made any payments toward the mortgage since moving out in 2012 and had incurred additional debts, including a new car purchase. Although he claimed to have paid off other debts and demonstrated a monthly surplus in his finances, he expressed no intention to repay the deficiency judgment or resolve the debt with the creditor.
The administrative judge ruled against the applicant, concluding that he failed to mitigate the security concerns. The judge noted that the applicant's ongoing financial irresponsibility and unwillingness to address the judgment debt indicated a lack of reliability and trustworthiness. The judge emphasized that the applicant did not provide evidence of financial counseling or a plan to resolve his debts, which raised concerns about potential coercion and the risk of engaging in questionable acts to generate funds. Consequently, the applicant's request for national security eligibility was denied.
Guidelines Evaluated
- Guideline FFinancial Considerations · Against Applicant
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Case Headnote

ISCR Case No. 23-00479

deniedNov 26, 2024· Hon. David M. White· hearing

Summary

A 39-year-old Senior Consultant with a bachelor's degree in finance and an MBA was denied a security clearance under Guideline F, Financial Considerations. The denial stemmed from significant unresolved financial issues, specifically a $153,221 mortgage deficiency judgment.

The Statement of Reasons alleged that the applicant still owed this judgment debt. The applicant admitted to the allegations but demonstrated an unwillingness to repay the debt, despite having a stable income. This raised concerns regarding his reliability and trustworthiness.

Ultimately, the applicant provided no evidence of financial responsibility or rehabilitation. Consequently, the security clearance was denied.

Why the Applicant Was Denied

The applicant has a significant unresolved debt of $153,221 from a mortgage deficiency judgment.
The applicant admitted to the allegations but showed unwillingness to repay the debt, raising concerns about reliability and trustworthiness.
The applicant provided no evidence of financial responsibility or rehabilitation.

Conditions Referenced

Disqualifying

AG ¶ 19(a)raisedInability to Satisfy Debts
AG ¶ 19(b)appliedUnwillingness to Satisfy Debts Regardless of the Ability to Do So
AG ¶ 19(c)appliedHistory of Not Meeting Financial Obligations

Key Rule Quoted

“Failure to live within one’s means, satisfy debts, and meet financial obligations may indicate poor self-control, lack of judgment, or unwillingness to abide by rules and regulations, all of which can raise questions about an individual’s reliability, trustworthiness, and ability to protect classified or sensitive information.”

Procedural Posture

SOR issuedApr 12, 2023
Answer filedMay 4, 2023
Hearing heldJul 27, 2023record left open until August 18, 2023
Decision dateNov 26, 2024

Cite For

Unwillingness to Repay Significant Debt Under Guideline F
Failure to Demonstrate Financial Responsibility
Impact of Unresolved Financial Obligations 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 F · descriptive summary of a decided case

Posture: HearingDecided: denied

The judge found against the applicant on the financial considerations under Guideline F, primarily due to a significant unresolved judgment debt of $153,221 related to a mortgage deficiency. Despite the applicant's claims of having paid off other debts and having a surplus income, his unwillingness to address the judgment debt raised security concerns that were not mitigated.

¶	Allegation	Finding	Type	Response	Disqualifying (¶19)	Mitigating applied (¶20)	Mitigation
1.a	Applicant admittedly still owes a judgment debt totaling $153,221. $153,221	Against Applicant	Judgment Against Applicant	Admitted	—	—	—

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

Full decision

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