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ISCR Case 03-22842.h1 — CASE

ISCR Case 03-22842.h1granted

Case Headnote

ISCR Case No. 03-22842.h1

grantedNov 15, 2004· Hon. Joseph Testan· hearing

Summary

A 57-year-old naturalized U.S. citizen engineer was granted a security clearance despite initial concerns under Guideline B (Foreign Influence). The Statement of Reasons cited his brother's Israeli citizenship and residency, and the applicant's frequent contact with him.

However, the applicant successfully demonstrated that his brother has no connection to the Israeli government and is not an agent who could be exploited to compromise U.S. interests. The applicant further mitigated concerns by formally renouncing his Israeli citizenship and surrendering his Israeli passport.

Ultimately, the decision to grant the clearance was supported by the applicant's strong ties to the United States and his stated intent to reside permanently in the U.S., satisfying the mitigating conditions for foreign influence.

Why the Applicant Prevailed

The applicant formally renounced his Israeli citizenship and surrendered his Israeli passport.
The applicant's brother is not an agent of Israel and cannot be exploited to compromise U.S. interests.
The applicant has established strong ties to the United States and intends to remain here permanently.

Conditions Referenced

Disqualifying

E2.A2.1.2.1raisedAn Immediate Family Member, or a Person to Whom the Individual Has Close Ties of Affection or Obligation, Is a Citizen Of, or Resident of or Present In, a Foreign Country.

Mitigating

E2.A2.1.3.1appliedA Determination That the Immediate Family Member(s) . . . in Question Are Not Agents of a Foreign Power or in a Position to Be Exploited by a Foreign Power in a Way That Could Force the Individual to Choose Between Loyalty to the Person(s) Involved and the United States.

Key Rule Quoted

“It is highly unlikely that Israel, a democratic ally which is heavily dependent upon the United States for its security, would risk its relationship with the United States by forcing a United States citizen to betray his country.”

Procedural Posture

SOR issuedMay 14, 2004
Answer filedMay 28, 2004
Hearing heldOct 26, 2004
Decision dateNov 15, 2004

Cite For

Rebuttal of Prima Facie Case Under Guideline B Due to Familial Ties in a Foreign Country
Application of Mitigating Conditions Regarding Family Members Not Being Agents of Foreign Powers
Consideration of the Applicant's Long-term Residency and Commitment to the U.S.

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 B (Foreign Influence) · descriptive summary of a decided case

Posture: Decision on RecordDecided: granted

The judge found that the applicant's brother is a citizen and resident of Israel, which raised concerns under Guideline B. However, the applicant successfully demonstrated that his brother does not present a significant security risk, leading to a decision in favor of the applicant. Clearance was granted based on the evidence presented.

U.S. ties the decision noted: Naturalized U.S. Citizen · Intent to Remain in U.S.

¶	Allegation	Finding	Relationship	Country	Response	Disqualifying (¶7)	Mitigating applied (¶8)	Mitigation
1.a	Applicant's brother is a citizen and resident of Israel.	For Applicant	Sibling in Foreign Country Immediate Family	Israel	Denied	(a) contact with a foreign family member/associate/friend creating a heightened risk of exploitation	(a) relationships such that a conflict between foreign and U.S. interests is unlikely	Documented Severed Foreign Contact
1.b	Applicant's brother has no connection with the Israeli government.	For Applicant	Sibling in Foreign Country Immediate Family	Israel	Denied	(a) contact with a foreign family member/associate/friend creating a heightened risk of exploitation	(a) relationships such that a conflict between foreign and U.S. interests is unlikely	Documented Severed Foreign Contact
1.c	Applicant maintains frequent and regular contact with his brother.	For Applicant	Sibling in Foreign Country Immediate Family	Israel	Denied	(a) contact with a foreign family member/associate/friend creating a heightened risk of exploitation	(a) relationships such that a conflict between foreign and U.S. interests is unlikely	Documented Severed Foreign Contact

Descriptive standardized rendering of a decided public case (Guideline B). 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

DATE: November 15, 2004

In Re:

------------

SSN: -----------

Applicant for Security Clearance

ISCR Case No. 03-22842

ECISION OF ADMINISTRATIVE JUDGE

JOSEPH TESTAN

SYNOPSIS

The Government established a prima facie case under Guideline B based on the fact applicant's brother is a citizen and resident of Israel. The applicant has, however, presented convincing evidence that his brother does not present a significant security risk. I therefore conclude that applicant has rebutted the Government's prima facie case. Clearance is granted.

STATEMENT OF CASE

On May 14, 2004, the Defense Office of Hearings and Appeals (DOHA), pursuant to Executive Order 10865 and Department of Defense Directive 5220.6 (Directive), dated January 2, 1992, issued a Statement of Reasons (SOR) to applicant which detailed reasons why DOHA could not make the preliminary affirmative finding under the Directive that it is clearly consistent with the national interest to grant or continue a security clearance for applicant and recommended referral to an Administrative Judge to determine whether clearance should be denied or revoked.

Applicant responded to the SOR in writing on May 28, 2004. The case was assigned to the undersigned on June 22, 2004. A Notice of Hearing was issued on August 9, 2004, and the hearing was held on October 26, 2004. The transcript was received on November 10, 2004.

FINDINGS OF FACT

Applicant is a 57 year old engineer. He has been employed in the defense industry for 25 years.

Applicant was born in an Eastern European country. In 1964, his family moved to Israel. In 1974, applicant moved to the United States. He became a naturalized United States citizen in 1980. His wife, from whom he is now divorced, is a citizen of Israel and a resident of the United States. They have two children. The oldest was born in Israel. He moved to the United States when he was three years olds. He became a United States citizen, but maintains his Israeli citizenship. He lives in the United States and intends to remain here. Applicant's youngest son was born and raised in the United States.

Applicant's brother is a citizen and resident of Israel. He has no connection with the Israeli government. Applicant speaks by telephone with his brother an average of once every two to three weeks. His brother has visited applicant in the United States once.

Applicant traveled to Israel in 1998, 2000, and perhaps one additional time. He traveled on an Israeli passport, which he has since surrendered to Israeli authorities. Applicant has also formally renounced his Israeli citizenship (Exhibit A).

Applicant testified that he is "a proud American citizen" who intends to remain in the United States (TR at 9, 25).

Letters from applicant's manager and two other coworkers were admitted into evidence (Exhibits B, C and D). These individuals describe applicant has having high ethical and moral standards, and all recommend him for a position of trust.

CONCLUSION

Although applicant and his two children are United States citizens living in the United States, applicant's brother is a citizen and resident of Israel. This fact requires application of Disqualifying Condition E2.A2.1.2.1 (An immediate family member, or a person to whom the individual has close ties of affection or obligation, is a citizen of, or resident of or present in, a foreign country).

Based on the evidence presented, I conclude that applicant's brother is not an agent of Israel. I further conclude that he is not in a position to be exploited by Israel in a way that could force applicant to choose between loyalty to him and loyalty to the United States. Although it would be naive to think Israel does not conduct economic espionage against the United States, it is highly unlikely that Israel, a democratic ally which is heavily dependent upon the United States for its security, would risk its relationship with the United States by forcing a United States citizen to betray his country. Furthermore, although applicant maintains frequent and regular contact with his brother, based on the evidence presented, including the facts that applicant has lived in this country for approximately 30 years, raised a family here, intends to retire and live here permanently, and formally renounced his Israeli citizenship, I conclude he would not compromise classified information in the unlikely event pressure was applied on him to do so. Based on the foregoing, Mitigating Condition E2.A2.1.3.1 (a determination that the immediate family member(s) . . . in question are not agents of a foreign power or in a position to be exploited by a foreign power in a way that could force the individual to choose between loyalty to the person(s) involved and the United States) is applicable to this case.

Based on the foregoing, I conclude that applicant's evidence was sufficient to overcome the Government's prima facie case under Guideline B.

FORMAL FINDINGS

GUIDELINE B: FOR THE APPLICANT

Subparagraph 1a: for the applicant

Subparagraph 1b: for the applicant

Subparagraph 1c: for the applicant

DECISION

In light of all the circumstances presented by the record in this case, it is clearly consistent with the national interest to grant or continue a security clearance for applicant.

Joseph Testan

Administrative Judge

FOOTNOTES

03-22842.h1 FOR GOVERNMENT Edward W. Loughran, Department Counsel FOR APPLICANT Pro Se file:///usr.osd.mil/...yComputer/Desktop/DOHA%20transfer/DOHA-Kane/dodogc/doha/industrial/Archived%20-%20HTML/03-22842.h1.html[7/2/2021 3:16:21 PM] 03-22842.h1