Alcohol Consumption and Security Clearances

@ForeverCoding I responding to your statement…but anyone on here can respond.

I value all resposnes and thank you for your time.

So you are saying that when my friend explains his dui(s) his plan to never get another one again is to simply leave the device in the car.

Isn’t that a solid plan? It is impossible to get a dui if you have that device in your car.

HR and security folk wouldnt agree

Lol its bad ok. Dui 2 and 3 were a week apart.

Not a good look.

How honest should be be lol. He didn’t think the 2nd dui was fair or legit so he mentally ignored it completely and that is why the 3rd one happened right after the 2nd one. He made no behavioral changes at all. In his defense, the 1st one was in 2012 so for 5 years he was doing smthn rite.

I dont he think shouldnt be able to work…but I acknowledge (even if he his my friend) how bad two dui(s) a week apart looks.

So he will have the device in his car to prevent him from drinking and driving ever again. Fair enough. But that doesnt solve his drinking issue. Whats there to say he doesnt come to work drunk? Whats there to say he doesn’t do anything questionable at the bar? Even worse, he may even spill classified information and not recall it at all.

Do you see my drift? The issue isnt the DUI. The DUI is one component of the whole mess hes portrayed himself to be. So have the device in his car all he wants it wont help his case by a landslide. We’re also talking about multiple DUIs not one or two…

If there are recent patterns of misconduct/unwillingness to follow rules, regulations, laws, etc., then security personnel have every right to question his judgment and his future behavior. Willful engagement in risky and illegal behavior is something you don’t want to take a chance on in the eyes of adjudicators. They don’t want someone who is a potential risk to be in an environment where he potentially can access sensitive or classified information. Whether or not the person doing the work requires a clearance in the first place is a whole other argument.

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If he wants any chance I think he would need an alcohol assessment, likely some type of inpatient/outpaitent alcohol treatment and a track record of counseling/AA attendence and some time to mitigate the concern.

I would think the motivation to pay one’s bills would be sufficent enough for none to happen because if he did that he would lose his.job. I am quite sure his supervisor.would aporeciate him coming to drunk…so that is not a concern that any of u need worry about.

It simply is if you live.in the United States metropolitan area and are.single with no.kids you are going out. Its really that simple. And you have a couple of beers and you drive and a cop gets you.

Darn.

Like.thats.the end of it. And again sensitive i information; really is he james bond?

Did you read my previous post. He is literally needing a badge so he can read scope.of works detailing trash cans to be dumped or.kitchens to be cleaned.

It was a janitorial contract. In what way is that sensitive?

So again I ask what.is he supposed to do. He has a solid plan for never.getting DuI again and that is unacceptable to you all yet that the reason why.he lost his job.

So what is he to do?.just never work in the field again

We can keep drawing on a white board and fantasize about conclusions all day. As I said before let him apply and await the results. Hopefully as he waits he takes this seriously and changes his habits.

GL.

We’re not speaking to you personally on this, were speaking in regards to the process. I wouldn’t worry about selling us on his trust worthyness. From an adjuncator standpoint 3 DUIs is a problem, it’s his responsibility now to show how it’s not by providing mitigating circumstances.

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While I do not personally agree(my thoughts are irrelevant); this thread has been helpful.

You have brought up the reasons/thought patterns for why this concern matters.

My friend can use this so now he knows how to best prepare his defense for the next 1.

Thanks

Is it impossible to get a DUI with the device in the car? Sure . . . Leave the car running; start car and THEN start popping the brews; defeat the device; have someone else blow; get another car; steal a car (you are, after all, drunk); drive your wife’s car or your son’s . . . .

You see how it goes on and on . . .

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Good afternoon,

I have a problem. I have 3 Dui(s) and I do not know how to explain them.

Long story short…I simply thought I could beat the system. I cannot.

In June 2012…I received my 1st dui. It was a simple traffic.violation (my headlights were out)…I had been drinking earlier but he (the officer) could not tell…no.smell, odor, slurred speech, etc.(this is by his account not mine-i.e. the police report) In other words I appeared normal.
What gave me away was I decided to talk to the officer and give him my opinion on things. If I had stayed quiet…“yes sir” “no sir” it would have simply been a ticket.

I say that to say that the take away from that for me (stupidly I now admit) was not don’t drink and drive but rather…shut up and be polite/respectful and you will be fine.

Well…5 years later that is no longer true. Dui 2 and 3 happend in March of 2017. I thought Dui 2 should not have happend because the police.officer pulled me over and then proceeded to rush towards the car and instructed me to get out the vehicle I am under arrest. (He did not go through his normal procedures of “do you know why I pulled you over” etc.) So I mentally ignored this all together thinking he was wrong, not I, and I will beat this in court.

Dui 3 happens and this is when it dawns on me that fine I cannot beat the police. The officer pulls me over for a tail-light being out and goes through his normal procedures and then instructs me to step out the vehicle.

I say all this to say…I am not a bad person nor am I an alocholoc, drunk, or any of the sort.

I simply like to.drink socially, trust myself to drive, and thought I could get away with it. I cannot so fine…I will now cut myself off completely so as to never get another one of these.

I can’t. Ok. I understand that. There will not be a 4th dui. I will not ever drink and drive again because if I am pulled over now (for anything); once the officer approaches my window and I roll it down…he will smell the alcohol and know I have been drinking.

It was not always like that and that is why I continued. I am stubborn and obviously dumb to chance it.

How do I explain that? I am stressed because I have created the perfect storm for myself. I don’t have an alochol problem. Again, I simply thought I could beat they system and I cant.

I am excellent at my job. Wherever I work…my work is praised. I have never had an employer ever say anything negative about my work.

As far as my drinking goes? It has nor would it ever interfere with my work. I never drink during the week because I don’t want to be hungover at work. I only ever go out Fri and/or Sat. (My dui(s) happened on these days).

Anyway, how should I explain this? What should I do. I have already volunteerly put myself in a alochol class.

Then you for your feedback.

I was unemployed at.the time.

I since began working in Nov 2017 and was let go in May 2018 due to my badge being revoked for said reasons.

Fine…your response is what I figured they would think.

I am.curre tly a server at restaurant…with a Masters degree.

When I say I wont do it again…you cN believe me.

I am.just trying to pay bills.

In that one instance fine…but I never.cut corners or do any of that at worj.

Again, as already stated my work is flawless. Any of my previous managers would attest to that…so I dont cut corners.

So how do I atrack this.

I understsnd wjat you are sayi g.

You have been very helpful.

Thank you.

There’s a lot there and it’s difficult to formulate a response because your question isn’t completely framed. You asked "how can I explain that? There are many ways that it can be explained but you are the only one who can determine how YOU can answer. What you have written here shows no remorse because you pretty much say that you would continue if you thought that you could get away with it. That’s a really poor attitude and doesn’t reflect well on you as a person.

What I see when I read your post is that you don’t think that rules apply to you. That isn’t good for someone trying to keep their clearance.

You don’t say anything about what the current status of your clearance is. Do you have an SOR or LOI?

A few suggestions . . . Get your ass into counseling. You can do drug and alcohol or just straight up therapy. You say that you don’t have a problem with alcohol but you do and you need to learn that if you want to stay in this industry. Next, talk with a clearance lawyer. Even just a free consult for now. Third . . . I don’t know what your qualifications are but you need to explore employment outside of the cleared world.

I don’t say any of this to be a jerk or to hurt you. You need to get your head together if you want to keep your life together.

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I had a few employees with DUI’s. They each went to mandatory counseling and therapy classes. One great employee (it isn’t lost on me a person drinks for many reasons and can still be a wonderful human or employee…with a drinking problem.) failed his class the first time as he sat defiant with arms crossed constantly telling others “I don’t belong here, I don’t have a drinking problem, I’m a great employee…I don’t cut corners, I only drink on weekends…I only get drunk when I drink.” It doesn’t matter what you or I think or disagree with. If a person has been caught 3 or 4 times the rule of thumb is they drove 8 times for each time caught. Big difference in saying I only have one DUI. The standard for DUI is the standard, .08, down from .01 about 24 years ago. Some states have a DWDI Driving with Drinking Indicated charge, and zero tolerance for any alcohol underage. One poster captured the reason this is important: a proven history of non compliance with laws. How can I trust this person will honor a secrecy agreement? How can I trust them to not share classified proposal work, client names etc? Is there anything in their history indicating they cannot be trusted to make wise, mature decisions? Yes. Multiple DUI’s indicate a refusal to live within the rules of society.Period. None of us need like that, or hate that. It is the law. That is both a personable conduct and trust issue. Attempting to defend or pretend DUI’s do not affect us all is ridiculous. It is like texting and driving. People should not do it; often kill others trying. We all get angry driving behind the person weaving, ten miles under the limit, not using signals all because they are distracted. Everyone who does this feels they can do it but others cannot. Where prohibited…it is the law. Do I want an employee on my compound driving intoxicated? No. I don’t want anyone doing that. Why would I accept putting my life at risk? A person with multiple DUI’s is not making good decisions.

Only one way to “attack” this. Quit drinking. Period. Act responsibly and within the law. Put a lot of time between you and the last DUI. Prove you can live without alcohol. The older you are the longer that period must be. Demonstrate trustworthiness…having a license to drive is a trust. Being defiant…indicates a lot. Oh, my employee successfully completed the second class often telling me about the “new” guy in class 2.0 sitting with arms crossed, glaring, refusing to admit there was a drinking problem…by then he got it and saw exactly how apparent it was both he and the new guy were there because they had a problem.

Marko,

The extent of my alcohol consumption consisted of going out once or twice a week at the end of college with my colleagues. I am not lying…we literally just sat at a booth, drank a pitcher or two between 3 or 4, and we talked about legal theory, political theory, science, all of the fun topics like AI. Is something like this actually an issue? If so, how does the federal government clear anyone who is actually honest then?

R3al1st

Youth and environment are taken into consideration, it was whether it resulted in an incident or arrest and whether the behavior has continued beyond that may be issues…

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A few drinks with your friends that do not involve any law enforcement, courts, or medical providers, is not an issue in the security clearance process.

A recent DUI, and two or more DUIs presents a greater alcohol issue. Arguments will start here but two or more DUIs flag that alcohol is an issue for that person.

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Concur with BI. It isn’t that one drinks that is a problem…the questions arise when you attended counseling, therapy, had legal issues (DUI drunk in public), or are blacking out drunk. So normal social consumption is of very little interest. Having a problem with alcohol…as evidenced by arrests, bad behaviors, etc…another topic

Hello,

My past alcohol usage is one issue I was very concerned about when filling out the SF-86. In the past, I would consume 12-15 beers about 2-3 times per week at home. However, I quit alcohol voluntarily around the time I was diagnosed with anxiety/depression. My psychiatrist told me that I was probably drinking to self-medicate due to my anxiety and depression. Furthermore, my drinking was not helping my mental health, so I figured it was best to just quit. I take medication for my anxiety/depression and have been sober since Oct. 1, 2018.

I feel much better and have been sober for over one year. Will the adjudicators see this period as enough time to mitigate my past alcohol usage?