A decided public DOHA case, shown for research, not advice or a prediction.
ISCR Case No. 17-00665.h1
GrantedDecided Sep 10, 2018 · Administrative Judge Jennifer I. Goldstein · Hearing
Case headnote
Summary
The applicant, a 49-year-old defense contractor and retired Navy senior chief petty officer, faced security concerns under Guideline F due to a past-due mortgage debt of $97,137. The debt arose from uncontrollable circumstances, including medical emergencies and a mold infestation. The applicant successfully modified the loan, brought the account current, and completed financial counseling, leading to a favorable decision.
Why the applicant prevailed
- The applicant demonstrated that the financial issues were caused by circumstances beyond his control.
- The applicant maintained constant communication with the creditor and successfully modified the mortgage loan.
- The applicant completed financial counseling and showed a low likelihood of recurrence of financial issues.
Conditions referenced
Mitigating
- AG ¶ 20(a) The behavior was not recent.applied
- AG ¶ 20(b) The conditions that resulted in the financial problems were beyond the applicant's control.applied
- AG ¶ 20(c) The applicant has made good faith efforts to repay the debts.applied
- AG ¶ 20(d) The applicant has received financial counseling.applied
Key rule quoted
“I weighed the evidence as a whole and considered whether the favorable evidence outweighed the unfavorable evidence.”
Procedural posture
- SOR issued
- April 14, 2017
- Answer filed
- April 29, 2017
- Hearing held
- March 15, 2018
- Decision date
- September 10, 2018 Proposed summary disposition in favor of applicant.
Cite for
- Mitigating Conditions Under Guideline F for Financial Considerations
- Evidence of Good Faith Efforts in Resolving Financial Issues
- Impact of Uncontrollable Circumstances on Financial Stability
Editorial summary generated for research. Not legal advice; not a prediction. Verify against the full decision before relying on any quoted language.
From the decision
Facts this decision states, each with the sentence it comes from. Descriptive of the record, not an assessment.
- Applicant Age
- 49
- Delinquent Usd
- 97137
- Payment Plan
- yes
- Bankruptcy
- none
Allegations under Guideline F
Reading the 1 per allegation row needs a free account.
1 row in this decision.
It opens the per allegation record on every guideline: the amounts, the findings, and the sentence behind each row.
Descriptive standardized rendering of a decided public case. The verbatim source decision is below.
Full decision
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Decision text, by section
Appearances
DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE DEFENSE OFFICE OF HEARINGS AND APPEALS
In the matter of: ) ) ) ISCR Case No. 17-00665 ) Applicant for Security Clearance )
For Government: Adrienne Driskill, Esq., Department Counsel For Applicant: [Redacted], Personal Representative
09/10/2018 ______________
Decision
______________
GOLDSTEIN, Jennifer I., Administrative Judge:
On April 14, 2017, the Department of Defense (DOD) issued a Statement of Reasons to Applicant detailing security concerns under Guideline F, Financial Considerations.1 Applicant responded to the SOR on April 29, 2017, and requested a hearing before an administrative judge. The case was assigned to me on January 25, 2018. The hearing was held as scheduled on March 15, 2018. On September 7, 2018, after receiving supplemental post-hearing exhibits from Applicant, I proposed to the parties that this case was appropriate for a summary disposition in Applicant’s favor. Department Counsel did not object.2 Applicant is a 49-year-old, employee of a defense contractor. He served 26 years on active duty in the Navy and retired at the rank of senior chief petty officer. He is married and has two children and two step-children. (GE 1, Tr. 121.)
The SOR alleged Applicant was indebted on a mortgage account that was past due in the amount of $97,137. Applicant documented that this debt was caused by a series of unfortunate events that were beyond his control, including multiple medical emergencies and a mold infestation of their family home due to water damage. (Tr. 130.) He has been in constant contact with the creditor since first becoming delinquent on the mortgage debt. In July 2018, the creditor finally approved his loan modification request and the account is now current. (Applicant Exhibit 1 though 53.) Applicant has completed financial counseling and there is little likelihood of recurrence.
Mitigating conditions set out in AG ¶¶ 20(a), 20(b), 20(c), and 20(d) have been established by the evidence. There is no doubt about Applicant’s current reliability, trustworthiness, good judgment, and ability to protect classified information. In reaching this conclusion, I weighed the evidence as a whole and considered whether the favorable evidence outweighed the unfavorable evidence. I also gave due consideration to the whole-person concept. Accordingly, I conclude that Applicant met his ultimate burden of persuasion to show that it is clearly consistent with the national interest to grant him national security eligibility for access to classified information. This case is decided for Applicant.
________________________ Jennifer Goldstein Administrative Judge
Footnotes
1 This case is adjudicated under Executive Order (EO) 10865, Safeguarding Classified Information within Industry (February 20, 1960), as amended; DOD Directive 5220.6, Defense Industrial Personnel Security Clearance Review Program (January 2, 1992), as amended (Directive); and the adjudicative guidelines, which became effective on June 8, 2017.
2 Emails dated September 7, 2018, from both parties indicating there were no objections to summary disposition in this case are marked as Hearing Exhibit I and are contained in the file.