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ISCR Case 23-00561 — CASE

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ISCR Case 23-00561

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

Case Profile
Decision Date1/22/2024
Statusgranted
LevelHEARING
TypeSTANDARD ISCR
Participants
Applicant Representation: Pro Se
Judge: Robert E. Coacher
Government Counsel: Tara R. Karoian
Case Summary
abstinence, and her credible testimony regarding her changed behavior and intentions.
The administrative judge ruled in favor of the applicant, granting her eligibility for access to classified information. The judge concluded that the applicant had successfully mitigated the security concerns related to drug involvement and substance misuse. The judge found that the applicant's past drug use was infrequent and primarily experimental during her college years, and that she had demonstrated a clear commitment to abstain from illegal drug use in the future. The applicant's credible testimony, along with her proactive steps to distance herself from drug-using environments and her signed statement of intent to abstain, were significant factors in the decision. The judge emphasized the importance of the applicant's full disclosure of her drug history and her sincere acknowledgment of past mistakes as key elements in the assessment of her reliability and trustworthiness.
Guidelines Evaluated
- Guideline HDrug Involvement & Substance Misuse · For Applicant
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Case Headnote

ISCR Case No. 23-00561

grantedJan 22, 2024· Hon. Robert E. Coacher· hearing

Summary

A 25-year-old systems engineer was granted a security clearance despite concerns under Guideline H (Drug Involvement). The Department of Defense issued a Statement of Reasons detailing her past drug use, which included marijuana from May 2017 to June 2022, ecstasy in December 2017, unprescribed Adderall in November 2020, cocaine in February 2021, and mushrooms from May 2022 to July 2022. An initial allegation also noted an intent to use marijuana in the future.

Disqualifying conditions AG ¶ 25(a) and AG ¶ 25(g) were raised. However, the administrative judge applied mitigating conditions AG ¶ 26(a) and AG ¶ 26(b), finding the applicant's testimony credible and sincere.

The judge noted the applicant's significant changes in behavior, including abstinence from all drug use since 2022. She also provided a signed statement affirming her commitment to abstain from illegal drug use in the future. Based on these factors, the applicant was granted eligibility for access to classified information.

Why the Applicant Prevailed

The applicant demonstrated significant changes in behavior, including abstinence from drug use since 2022.
She provided a signed statement of intent to abstain from all illegal drug use in the future.
The judge found her testimony credible and sincere regarding her past drug use and future intentions.

Conditions Referenced

Disqualifying

AG ¶ 25(a)raisedAny Substance Misuse
AG ¶ 25(g)raisedExpressed Intent to Continue Drug Involvement and Substance Misuse

Mitigating

AG ¶ 26(a)appliedThe Behavior Happened so Long Ago, Was so Infrequent, or Happened Under Such Circumstances That It Is Unlikely to Recur or Does Not Cast Doubt on the Individual's Current Reliability, Trustworthiness, or Good Judgment
AG ¶ 26(b)appliedThe Individual Acknowledges His or Her Drug Involvement and Substance Misuse, Provides Evidence of Actions Taken to Overcome This Problem, and Has Established a Pattern of Abstinence

Key Rule Quoted

“The protection of the national security is the paramount consideration.”

Procedural Posture

SOR issuedMar 24, 2023
Answer filedMar 30, 2023
Hearing heldNov 2, 2023
Decision dateJan 22, 2024

Cite For

Mitigation of Drug Involvement Under Guideline H
Credibility of Applicant's Testimony Regarding Past Substance Use
Commitment to Abstain From Future Drug Use as a Mitigating Factor

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 H (Drug Involvement) · descriptive summary of a decided case

Posture: HearingDecided: granted

The judge found that the applicant used marijuana, ecstasy, Adderall, cocaine, and mushrooms over various periods, but concluded that the applicant mitigated the drug involvement concerns. The applicant admitted to the drug use, described it as experimental, and provided credible testimony and a signed statement of intent to abstain from future illegal drug use. The outcome was granted, indicating the applicant's eligibility for a security clearance.

¶	Allegation	Finding	Substance / event	Use level	Response	Disqualifying (¶25)	Mitigating applied (¶26)	Mitigation
1.a	Applicant used marijuana from May 2017 to June 2022.	For Applicant	Marijuana	Regular	Admitted	—	(a) behavior happened long ago / infrequent / unlikely to recur (b) acknowledges involvement; evidence of action; established abstinence	Documented Abstinence Period Documented
1.b	Applicant used ecstasy in December 2017.	For Applicant	MDMA	Experimental	Admitted	—	(a) behavior happened long ago / infrequent / unlikely to recur (b) acknowledges involvement; evidence of action; established abstinence	Documented Abstinence Period Documented
1.c	Applicant used Adderall, not prescribed to her, in November 2020.	For Applicant	Prescription Stimulant Misuse	Experimental	Admitted	—	(a) behavior happened long ago / infrequent / unlikely to recur (b) acknowledges involvement; evidence of action; established abstinence	Documented Abstinence Period Documented
1.d	Applicant used cocaine in February 2021.	For Applicant	Cocaine	Experimental	Admitted	—	(a) behavior happened long ago / infrequent / unlikely to recur (b) acknowledges involvement; evidence of action; established abstinence	Documented Abstinence Period Documented
1.e	Applicant used mushrooms from May 2022 to July 2022.	For Applicant	Psilocybin	Regular	Admitted	—	(a) behavior happened long ago / infrequent / unlikely to recur (b) acknowledges involvement; evidence of action; established abstinence	Documented Abstinence Period Documented
1.f	Applicant intended to use marijuana in the future.	For Applicant	Stated Intent to Use Again	Not Applicable	Admitted	—	(a) behavior happened long ago / infrequent / unlikely to recur (b) acknowledges involvement; evidence of action; established abstinence	Documented Abstinence Period Documented

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.