Almost 3 years ago, someone hacked into my Facebook account and used my name to trade insults and threats with a complete stranger. That stranger reported me to my agency. As a result, I was removed on 3 charges: Conduct unbecoming(insults and threats), Neglect of duty(some posts were made during my shift) and Lack of candor(I denied the allegations). I appealed and despite the fact that I had strong evidence(IP addresses among other things) to suggest I was telling the truth and someone indeed hacked into my account, I ultimately decided to settle the case without going all the way to the hearing because I thought it wasn’t worth the time, effort, money and risk. My removal was rescinded and changed to a voluntary resignation. I also got some of my attorney fees back.
In this case, would I have to disclose this incident on SF86 or OF306 when asked “have you been fired or resigned when told you would be fired?” I’ve already consulted with some attorneys and they seem to agree that I would have to answer YES to that question. If so, how much of a negative impact would it have on my clearance/suitability determination?
I would absolutely answer yes. By answering yes you get the opportunity to tell your side of the story upfront and appear open and honest without the investigator learning of the knowledge somewhere else (more than likely they will) and then confronting you with the information later (which makes you look dishonest and like you have something to hide). I cannot tell you how this will affect your adjudication as I am an investigator and not an adjudicator. When writing your report I would have to add an issue code to the report to alert the adjudicator to look for an employment issue. I would recommend to bring copies of whatever documentation you have to your interview to let the investigator look at or have (if the investigator would like). Good luck.
Thank you very much!
Would the background investigator ask for the entire case file or just a brief overview? A lot of those documents are largely irrelevant and contain personal info so I’m somewhat reluctant to share. Also would the fact that it was settled be considered a mitigating factor? Because if not, it sounds like I bargained for nothing…
So we normally get records ourselves straight from the source and not from the Subject. I do not know all the ends and outs of your case so I don’t know where the records are kept and if they are somewhere the investigator can get them or not which is why I said to bring copies. I am not sure what kind of “personal” info is in there that you don’t want the investigator to see when they have your entire SF86 that was submitted with enough information to steal your identity if they chose to… that’s why we are cleared as well. From my understanding of your explanation the documentation would help clear your name and show your innocence so I would think you would be eager to share that information. Maybe I misunderstood. If the investigator did want documentation from you, more than likely it would not be a massive file that would be asked for, it would be something specific like the disposition, final settlement agreement, etc… they will ask you to answer all the who, what, where, when, and why’s of the situation so just be ready for that, it is required for us to do.
Thank you for your reply, HR2C.
Per the settlement agreement, the entire case file should be expunged from any agency system of records. However, I don’t know how thoroughly the agency will expunge and clean my record, so the case file might still be accessible to investigators. I’m eager to share my written reply to the proposed removal because it explains my side of the story very well. However, the case file has my entire Facebook history, including private posts and messages that I do not want strangers to see(and irrelevant to my removal case). I’m not afraid of disclosing them but I hope I don’t have to.
I guess what I want to know is, would the adjudicator want to dig into the details and basically “re-decide” my removal case, or would they just want to get an overview. If the former, then I guess it would defeat the purpose of the clean record settlement. In my opinion, the clean record settlement should mean that the agency is not confident enough to defend its position and prove the charges against me, and that this case is over and done. At least, the fact that it settled should be considered a strong mitigating factor.
I very highly doubt the adjudicator is going to want to read all your private Facebook messages unless there were some indication that they revealed behavior that goes against the adjudicative guidelines