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ISCR Case 24-02281 — CASE

ISCR Case 24-02281denied

Case Headnote

ISCR Case No. 24-02281

deniedDec 10, 2025· Hon. Erin C. Hogan· hearing

Summary

A 37-year-old male applicant was denied a U.S. security clearance under Guideline H (Drug Involvement) due to his history of marijuana use. The Statement of Reasons alleged that the applicant used marijuana from approximately August 2010 to January 2025, and specifically from January 2024 until January 2025, after completing his security clearance application.

The denial was based on the applicant's admission of ongoing marijuana use, including after his application submission. While he acknowledged his past use and expressed an intent to abstain, he failed to provide sufficient evidence of rehabilitation or a firm commitment to cease drug use.

The judge determined that insufficient time had passed since the applicant's last reported use to conclude that he was serious about abstaining. This raised concerns about his reliability and trustworthiness, leading to the denial of his security clearance. Disqualifying conditions AG ¶ 25(a) and AG ¶ 25(c) were cited.

Why the Applicant Was Denied

The applicant admitted to ongoing marijuana use, including after submitting his security clearance application.
He failed to demonstrate sufficient evidence of rehabilitation or intent to abstain from drug use.
The judge found that insufficient time had passed since his last use to conclude he was serious about abstaining.

Conditions Referenced

Disqualifying

AG ¶ 25(a)appliedAny Substance Misuse
AG ¶ 25(c)appliedIllegal Possession of a Controlled Substance

Key Rule Quoted

“the clearly consistent standard indicates that security determinations should err, if they must, on the side of denials.”
— Department of the Navy v. Egan, 484 U.S. 518, 531 (1988)

Procedural Posture

SOR issuedFeb 19, 2025
Answer filedApr 24, 2025Applicant elected a decision on the written record.
Hearing heldDec 10, 2025Decision issued on the same day.

Cite For

Ongoing Marijuana Use as a Disqualifying Factor Under Guideline H
Failure to Demonstrate Rehabilitation in Drug Involvement Cases
Importance of Compliance with Federal Law Regarding Controlled Substances in Security Clearance Evaluations.

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: Decision on RecordDecided: denied

The judge found that the applicant used marijuana from approximately August 2010 to January 2025, including after submitting his security clearance application. The judge ruled against the applicant on both allegations under Guideline H, concluding that the applicant's drug use raises significant security concerns.

¶	Allegation	Finding	Substance / event	Use level	Response	Disqualifying (¶25)	Mitigating applied (¶26)	Mitigation
1.a	Applicant used marijuana from approximately August 2010 to January 2025.	Against Applicant	Marijuana	Regular	Admitted	(a) any substance misuse (c) illegal possession, cultivation, manufacture, purchase, sale, or distribution; or paraphernalia	—	—
1.b	Applicant used marijuana from January 2024 until January 2025 after completing his security clearance application.	Against Applicant	MarijuanaWHILE CLEARED	Regular	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.

Decision text, by section

DEFENSE OFFICE OF HEARINGS AND APPEALS

HEARING

APPEARANCES

______________ ______________ DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE DEFENSE OFFICE OF HEARINGS AND APPEALS In the matter of: Applicant for Security Clearance ) ) ) ) ) ISCR Case No. 24-02281 Appearances For Government: Erin P. Thompson, Esq., Department Counsel For Applicant: Pro se 12/10/2025

STATEMENT OF CASE

HOGAN, Erin C., Administrative Judge: The security concern raised under Guideline H, Drug Involvement and Substance Misuse, is not mitigated. Eligibility for access to classified information is denied. Statement of the Case Applicant submitted a security clearance application (SCA) on January 22, 2024. (Item 3) The Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency (DCSA) issued Applicant a Statement of Reasons (SOR) on February 19, 2025, detailing security concerns under Guideline H. DCSA acted under Executive Order (Exec. Or.) 10865, Safeguarding Classified Information within Industry (February 20, 1960), as amended; Department of Defense (DOD) Directive 5220.6, Defense Industrial Personnel Security Clearance Review Program (January 2, 1992), as amended (Directive); and Security Executive Agent Directive 4, National Security Adjudicative Guidelines, effective within the DOD as of June 8, 2017.

On April 24, 2025, Applicant answered the SOR and elected a decision on the written record by an administrative judge of the Defense Office of Hearings and Appeals (DOHA). On June 5, 2025, Department Counsel submitted the Government’s File of Relevant Material (FORM), including documents identified as Items 1 through 5. Applicant received the FORM on June 18, 2025. He was afforded 30 days after receiving the FORM to file objections and submit material in refutation, extenuation, or mitigation. He did not submit additional matters in response to the FORM. The case was forwarded to the Hearing Office on September 2, 2025, and assigned to me on December 4, 2025. Several names and other facts have been modified to protect Applicant’s privacy interests. More detailed facts can be found in the record.

FINDINGS OF FACT

In Applicant’s SOR response, he admits the allegations in SOR ¶¶ 1.a and 1.b. Applicant’s admissions are accepted as findings of fact. (Item 2) Applicant is 37 years old. He is being sponsored for a security clearance by either his employer or future employer, a DOD contractor. The record is unclear as to whether he is a current employee of a DOD contractor. This is his first time applying for a security clearance. He has no military experience. He is married and has two minor children, ages 14 and 8, and a stepchild, age 18. (Item 3) The SOR alleges under Guideline H that Applicant used marijuana from approximately August 2010 to January 2025 (SOR ¶ 1.a: Item 3 at 26, Item 4 at 2, 8, Item 5 at 6); and that he used marijuana from January 2024 until January 2025, after completing his security clearance application on January 22, 2024, in order to apply for a Department of Defense security clearance. (SOR ¶ 1.b: Item 5) Guideline H - Drug Involvement and Substance Misuse Applicant began to use illegal drugs starting in approximately August 2010, when he began to use marijuana. He listed on his January 2024 security clearance application that he used marijuana periodically from approximately August 2010 to January 2024, the month he submitted his security clearance application. (Item 3 at 26). In response to DOHA interrogatories on September 26, 2024, he listed he last used marijuana on July 6, 2024. He indicated he stopped using marijuana in hopes of qualifying for a job with a DOD contractor. He is aware that marijuana use remains illegal under federal law even if it is legal under state law. He also acknowledged that any future use of marijuana may affect his security clearance eligibility. (Item 4)

On September 9, 2025, Applicant replied to a second set of DOHA interrogatories. In response to the question, “Have you used any illegal drugs since September 2024,” he responded: January 1, 2025/Smoked joint on New Years Eve. – If there is an indication I am qualified for the position, I will no longer indulge. It is purely occasional and recreational usage. (Item 5 at 6)

POLICIES

It is well established that no one has a right to a security clearance. As the Supreme Court held, “the clearly consistent standard indicates that security determinations should err, if they must, on the side of denials.” Department of the Navy v. Egan, 484 U.S. 518, 531 (1988). The adjudicative guidelines are not inflexible rules of law. Instead, recognizing the complexities of human behavior, administrative judges apply the guidelines in conjunction with the factors listed in the adjudicative process. The administrative judge’s overarching adjudicative goal is a fair, impartial, and commonsense decision. According to AG ¶ 2(a), the entire process is a conscientious scrutiny of a number of variables known as the “whole-person concept.” The administrative judge must consider all available, reliable information about the person, past and present, favorable and unfavorable, in making a decision. The protection of the national security is the paramount consideration. AG ¶ 2(b) requires that “[a]ny doubt concerning personnel being considered for access to classified information will be resolved in favor of the national security.” In reaching this decision, I have drawn only those conclusions that are reasonable, logical, and based on the evidence contained in the record. Likewise, I have avoided drawing inferences grounded on mere speculation or conjecture. Under Directive ¶ E3.1.14, the Government must present evidence to establish controverted facts alleged in the SOR. Under Directive ¶ E3.1.15, an “applicant is responsible for presenting witnesses and other evidence to rebut, explain, extenuate, or mitigate facts admitted by applicant or proven by Department Counsel, and has the ultimate burden of persuasion as to obtaining a favorable security decision.” A person who seeks access to classified information enters into a fiduciary relationship with the Government predicated upon trust and confidence. This relationship transcends normal duty hours and endures throughout off-duty hours. The Government reposes a high degree of trust and confidence in individuals to whom it grants access to classified information. Decisions include, by necessity, consideration of the possible risk that an applicant may deliberately or inadvertently fail to safeguard classified information. Such decisions entail a certain degree of legally permissible extrapolation as to potential, rather than actual, risk of compromise of classified information.

DOD and Federal Government Policy on Marijuana Use On October 25, 2014, the Director for National Intelligence issued a memorandum titled, “Adherence to Federal Laws Prohibiting Marijuana Use” addressing concerns raised by the decriminalization of marijuana use in several states and the District of Columbia. The memorandum states that changes to state and local laws do not alter the existing National Security Adjudicative Guidelines. “An individual’s disregard for federal law pertaining to the use, sale, or manufacture of marijuana remains adjudicatively relevant in national security determinations.” On May 26, 2015, the Director of the United States Office of Personnel Management (OPM) issued a memorandum titled, “Federal Laws and Policies Prohibiting Marijuana Use.” The Director of OPM acknowledged that several jurisdictions have decriminalized the use of marijuana, allowing the use of marijuana for medicinal purposes and/or for limited recreational use but stated that federal law on marijuana remains unchanged. Marijuana is categorized as a controlled substance under Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act. Thus, knowing or intentional marijuana possession is federally illegal, even if the individual has no intent to manufacture, distribute, or dispense marijuana. On December 21, 2021, the Director of National Intelligence signed the memorandum, Security Executive Agent Clarifying Guidance Concerning Marijuana for Agencies Conducting Adjudications of Persons Proposed for Eligibility for Access to Classified Information or Eligibility to Hold a Sensitive Position. It emphasizes that federal law remains unchanged with respect to the illegal use, possession, production, and distribution of marijuana. Individuals who hold a clearance or occupy a sensitive position are prohibited by law from using controlled substances. Disregard of federal law pertaining to marijuana (including prior recreational marijuana use) remains relevant, but not determinative, to adjudications of eligibility. Agencies are required to use the “whole- person concept” stated under SEAD 4, to determine whether the applicant’s behavior raises a security concern that has not been mitigated.

ANALYSIS

Guideline H: Drug Involvement and Substance Misuse AG ¶ 24 expresses the security concern for drug involvement: The illegal use of controlled substances . . . can raise questions about an individual’s reliability and trustworthiness, both because such behavior may lead to physical or psychological impairment and because it raises questions about a person’s ability or willingness to comply with laws, rules, and regulations.

I have considered the disqualifying conditions for drug involvement and substance misuse under AG ¶ 25 and the following are potentially applicable: AG ¶ 25(a) any substance misuse; and AG ¶ 25(c) illegal possession of a controlled substance, including cultivation, processing, manufacture, purchase, sale, or distribution; or possession of drug paraphernalia. Both AG ¶¶ 25(a) and 25(c) apply. Applicant has a history of illegal marijuana use. He admits to using marijuana on various occasions for almost 15 years starting approximately in August 2010 until January 1, 2025. He is aware that marijuana use remains illegal under federal law. He continued to use marijuana after submitting his January 2024 security clearance application. He admits to using marijuana in July 2024 and on January 1, 2025. He indicates in his response to the second set of interrogatories that he will no longer use marijuana if he qualifies for the position. The Government’s substantial evidence and Applicant’s admissions raise security concerns under Guideline H. The burden shifted to Applicant to produce evidence to rebut, explain, extenuate, or mitigate the security concerns. (Directive ¶ E3.1.15) An applicant has the burden of proving a mitigating condition, and the burden of disproving it never shifts to the Government. (See ISCR Case No. 02-31154 at 5 (App. Bd. Sept. 22, 2005)) The guideline also includes examples of conditions that could mitigate security concerns arising from drug involvement and substance misuse. The following mitigating conditions under AG ¶ 26 potentially apply: AG ¶ 26(a) the 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; and AG ¶ 26(b) the individual acknowledges his or her drug involvement and substance misuse, provides evidence on actions taken to overcome this problem, and has established a p attern of abstinence, including, but not limited to: (1) disassociation from drug-using associates and contacts; (2) changing or avoiding the environment where drugs were used; and (3) providing a signed statement of intent to abstain from all drug involvement and substance misuse, acknowledging that any future involvement or misuse is grounds for revocation of national security eligibility. Neither mitigating condition applies because of Applicant’s long history of illegal marijuana use. Questions are raised about his reliability, trustworthiness, and judgment

because he continued to use marijuana after submitting his security clearance application in January 2024. In response to interrogatories, he admits to using marijuana in July 2024 and that his last use of marijuana occurred on January 1, 2025. His decision to continue using marijuana after submitting his security clearance application reveals that he is not serious about discontinuing marijuana use despite indicating he was aware that it was illegal under federal law and not consistent with holding a security clearance. Not enough time has passed to conclude he is serious about abstaining from marijuana use. The security concerns raised under Drug Involvement and Substance Misuse are not mitigated.

WHOLE PERSON CONCEPT

Under the whole-person concept, the administrative judge must evaluate an applicant’s eligibility for a public trust position by considering the totality of the applicant’s conduct and all relevant circumstances. The administrative judge should consider the nine adjudicative process factors listed at AG ¶ 2(d): (1) the nature, extent, and seriousness of the conduct; (2) the circumstances surrounding the conduct, to include knowledgeable participation; (3) the frequency and recency of the conduct; (4) the individual’s age and maturity at the time of the conduct; (5) the extent to which participation is voluntary; (6) the presence or absence of rehabilitation and other permanent behavioral changes; (7) the motivation for the conduct; (8) the potential for pressure, coercion, exploitation, or duress; and (9) the likelihood of continuation or recurrence. Under AG ¶ 2(c), the ultimate determination of whether to grant eligibility for a security must be an overall commonsense judgment based upon careful consideration of the guidelines and the whole-person concept. I considered the potentially disqualifying and mitigating conditions in light of all the facts and circumstances surrounding this case. I have incorporated my comments under Guideline H and the AG ¶ 2(d) factors in this whole-person analysis. Because Applicant requested a determination on the record without a hearing, I had no opportunity to evaluate his credibility and sincerity based on demeanor. Insufficient time has passed since his last use of marijuana to overcome the extent and seriousness of his conduct. See ISCR Case No. 01-12350 at 3-4 (App. Bd. Jul. 23, 2003). I considered Applicant is applying for a security clearance for the first time. I considered his honesty when disclosing his history of marijuana use during his background investigation. However, questions remain because he continued to use marijuana after submitting the January 2024 security clearance application with his most recent use of marijuana occurring in January 2025, less than a year from the date of this decision. While he indicates he will stop using marijuana if he is granted a security

_____________________________ clearance and gets a job with a DOD contractor, his intent is conditional. Considering his history of illegal marijuana use, not enough time has passed to conclude he is serious about his intention to refrain from illegal drug use. After weighing the disqualifying and mitigating conditions under Guideline H and evaluating all the evidence in the context of the whole person, I conclude Applicant has not mitigated the security concerns raised by his conduct under Guideline H. This decision should not be construed as a determination that Applicant cannot or will not attain the state of reform necessary for award of a security clearance in the future. With more effort towards maintaining a drug-free lifestyle, he may well be able to demonstrate persuasive evidence of his security clearance worthiness.

FORMAL FINDINGS

Formal findings for or against Applicant on the allegations set forth in the SOR, as required by section E3.1.25 of Enclosure 3 of the Directive, are: Paragraph 1, Guideline H: AGAINST APPLICANT Subparagraphs 1.a, 1.b: Against Applicant

CONCLUSION

In light of all of the circumstances presented, it is not clearly consistent with the interests of national security to grant Applicant’s eligibility for access to classified information. Eligibility for access to classified information is denied. Erin C. Hogan Administrative Judge