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ISCR Case 24-00503 — CASE

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ISCR Case 24-00503

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

Case Profile
Decision Date1/15/2025
Statusdenied
LevelHEARING
TypeSTANDARD ISCR
Participants
Applicant Representation: Pro Se
Judge: Pamela C. Benson
Government Counsel: Dan O'Reilley
Case Summary
The applicant in this case was a 37-year-old software developer employed by a federal contractor, seeking a security clearance. The adjudicative guidelines at issue were related to drug involvement and substance misuse under Guideline H. The Statement of Reasons (SOR) alleged that the applicant had used and purchased marijuana from June 2008 to April 2024, despite being aware that such use was illegal under federal law and in his state of residence. The applicant admitted to all allegations in the SOR, including a past failure of a pre-employment drug test in 2014.
During the hearing, the applicant acknowledged his marijuana use and expressed a willingness to abstain from it in the future, although he could not definitively commit to never using it again. He provided character references that described him as reliable and trustworthy, and he submitted a letter of intent to abstain from marijuana use while holding a security clearance. However, the administrative judge found that the applicant's admissions and the nature of his drug use did not sufficiently mitigate the security concerns raised. Consequently, the judge ruled that the applicant's eligibility for access to classified information was denied, citing the ongoing nature of the applicant's drug involvement and his expressed intent to potentially use marijuana again in the future.
Guidelines Evaluated
- Guideline HDrug Involvement & Substance Misuse · Against Applicant
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Case Headnote

ISCR Case No. 24-00503

deniedJan 15, 2025· Hon. Pamela C. Benson· hearing

Summary

A 37-year-old software developer was denied a security clearance under Guideline H (Drug Involvement) due to extensive marijuana use spanning from approximately June 2008 to April 2024. The applicant admitted to using marijuana with varying frequency and purchasing it throughout this period, including after completing his security clearance application and participating in a background interview in October 2023. Additionally, he failed a pre-employment drug test for marijuana in 2014.

The administrative judge noted that the applicant continued marijuana use even after becoming aware of federal prohibitions and expressed an intent to use it in the future. This raised significant concerns about his reliability and trustworthiness, as well as his commitment to discontinuing use.

Ultimately, the judge found insufficient evidence of rehabilitation or a firm commitment to abstain from marijuana. The applicant's prolonged use and expressed uncertainty about future abstinence demonstrated a disregard for security clearance eligibility standards, leading to the denial of his eligibility for access to classified information.

Why the Applicant Was Denied

The applicant admitted to using marijuana regularly for over 15 years, including after submitting his security clearance application.
He expressed uncertainty about his future marijuana use, raising concerns about his reliability and trustworthiness.
The applicant's continued use of marijuana after being aware of its prohibition under federal law demonstrated a disregard for security clearance eligibility standards.

Conditions Referenced

Disqualifying

AG ¶ 25(a)raisedSubstance Misuse
AG ¶ 25(b)raisedTesting Positive for an Illegal Drug
AG ¶ 25(g)raisedExpressed Intent to Continue Drug Involvement

Key Rule Quoted

“Once a concern arises regarding an Applicant’s security clearance eligibility, there is a strong presumption against the grant or maintenance of a security clearance.”
— ISCR Case No. 10-04641 at 4 (App. Bd. Sept. 24, 2013)

Procedural Posture

SOR issuedMay 6, 2024
Answer filed—
Hearing heldOct 3, 2024via video teleconference
Decision dateJan 15, 2025

Cite For

Denial of Security Clearance Due to Long-term Drug Involvement Under Guideline H
Insufficient Evidence of Rehabilitation in Drug-related Cases
Impact of Expressed Intent to Continue Drug Use 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 H (Drug Involvement) · descriptive summary of a decided case

Posture: HearingDecided: denied

The judge found that the applicant used marijuana with varying frequency from June 2008 to April 2024, purchased marijuana during that time, and failed a pre-employment drug test in 2014. The applicant also expressed an intention to use marijuana in the future. However, the judge ruled in favor of the applicant on one allegation regarding continued use after completing a substance abuse assessment, considering it a duplicate. Overall, the decision was denied based on the applicant's drug involvement.

¶	Allegation	Finding	Substance / event	Use level	Response	Disqualifying (¶25)	Mitigating applied (¶26)	Mitigation
1.a	Applicant used marijuana with varying frequency from about June 2008 to about April 2024.	Against Applicant	Marijuana	Frequent	Admitted	(a) any substance misuse (b) testing positive for an illegal drug (c) illegal possession, cultivation, manufacture, purchase, sale, or distribution; or paraphernalia (g) expressed intent to continue, or failure to commit to discontinue	—	—
1.b	Applicant purchased marijuana from about June 2008 to at least October 2023.	Against Applicant	Marijuana	Frequent	Admitted	(a) any substance misuse (b) testing positive for an illegal drug (c) illegal possession, cultivation, manufacture, purchase, sale, or distribution; or paraphernalia (g) expressed intent to continue, or failure to commit to discontinue	—	—
1.c	Applicant continued to use marijuana after he completed the SCA and after he participated in a background interview in October 2023.	For Applicant	Marijuana	Frequent	Admitted	—	—	Claimed Acknowledgment and Remorse
1.d	Applicant failed a pre-employment drug test after testing positive for marijuana in about 2014.	Against Applicant	Drug Test Failure	Not Applicable	Admitted	(a) any substance misuse (b) testing positive for an illegal drug (c) illegal possession, cultivation, manufacture, purchase, sale, or distribution; or paraphernalia (g) expressed intent to continue, or failure to commit to discontinue	—	—
1.e	Applicant disclosed that he intended to use marijuana in the future.	Against Applicant	Stated Intent to Use Again	Not Applicable	Admitted	(a) any substance misuse (b) testing positive for an illegal drug (c) illegal possession, cultivation, manufacture, purchase, sale, or distribution; or paraphernalia (g) expressed intent to continue, or failure to commit to discontinue	—	—

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.