Decisions were issued on: - Personnel Security
Office of Hearings and Appeals
July 5, 2024
minute read time
Personnel Security Cases
Access Authorization Not Restored; Guideline D (Sexual Behavior), Guideline E (Personal Conduct), Guideline G (Alcohol Consumption), and Guideline J (Criminal Conduct)
On July 1, 2024, an Administrative Judge determined that an Individual's access authorization should not be restored under 10 C.F.R. Part 710. The Individual was cited for sexual battery after allegedly groping a woman at a public event. The local security office issued the Individual a letter of interrogatory. In his response, the Individual claimed that he consumed alcohol in moderation and was not intoxicated when he allegedly committed the sexual battery. The Individual subsequently met with a DOE-contracted psychologist (DOE Psychologist). The Individual reported to the DOE Psychologist that he consumed alcohol in moderation, but alcohol testing requested by the DOE Psychologist contradicted the Individual's account of his alcohol consumption. The DOE Psychologist concluded that the Individual binge consumed alcohol to the point of impaired judgment and met sufficient diagnostic criteria for a diagnosis of Alcohol Use Disorder under the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders -Fifth Edition. The DOE Psychologist recommended that the Individual demonstrate rehabilitation by receiving alcohol-related treatment and abstaining from alcohol for one year. At the hearing, the Individual brought forth information to resolve the security concerns under Guideline D. However, the Individual admitted that he continued to consume alcohol against treatment recommendations, had not pursued alcohol-related treatment, and had not yet satisfied the terms of his probation related to the sexual battery offense. The Administrative Judge concluded that the Individual had not resolved the security concerns under Guidelines E, G, and J. Therefore, the Administrate Judge determined that the Individual's access authorization should not be restored. ( OHA Case No. PSH-24-0109, Harmonick)
Access Authorization Denied; Guideline G (Alcohol Consumption)
On July 5, 2024, an Administrative Judge determined that the Individual's access authorization should not be restored under 10 C.F.R. Part 710. In September 2023, the Individual was charged with Battery On A Household Member after consuming two sixteen-ounce alcoholic beverages. In the answer to a Letter of Interrogatory (LOI) issued in October 2023, the Individual indicated that the September 2023 criminal charge against him was dismissed. Ex. 8 at 47. He also reported that, although he testified during a prior administrative review hearing in November 2022 that he had been sober since July 2021 and was dedicated to his sobriety, he had relapsed and consumed "[two] beers" in July 2023 and two beers in September 2023. He further claimed that he had been sober since his September 2023 consumption. Following the October 2023 LOI, the Individual was evaluated by a DOE-consultant Psychologist (DOE Psychologist), which resulted in the DOE Psychologist in diagnosing the Individual with Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD), moderate, without adequate evidence of rehabilitation or reformation. At the hearing, the Individual testified that he relapsed in July 2023 after the death of his uncle and after he had stopped attending Alcoholics Anonymous (AA). He also testified that he began attending AA again the weekend after his September 2023 charge. He also began seeing a therapist for weekly session in November 2023 and attending telehealth Intensive Outpatient Treatment (IOP) in February 2024. The Individual's Employee Assistance Program counselor testified that he attended a six-week alcohol awareness program, while under the Fitness For Duty program. She also testified that she was very optimistic about his likelihood of remaining sober. After hearing all the testimony, the DOE Psychologist testified that the Individual is not yet rehabilitated and that his AUD diagnosis would be in sustained remission after 12 months of sobriety from his last alcohol consumption in September 2023. The Administrative Judge found that none of the mitigating conditions had been satisfied and that the Individual was not able to demonstrate that he had resolved the security concerns arising under Guideline G. (OHA Case No. PSH-24-0081, Fishman)