Do you know of anyone with a challenging and dysfunctional family who has successfully acquired a high level security clearance?
Hypothetical
One parent committed multiple crimes and served prison time. That parent is a foreign national. The applicant has not been in touch with the parent for over 20 years. The applicant is US born, but was granted foreign citizenship as a minor through no effort of their own. One sibling is severely mentally ill. They are in and out of treatment facilities and have been convicted of various offenses as a result of their condition. Their delusions are pretty inflammatory and posted online. The applicant is no longer touch with the sibling. The other parent does not communicate with the applicant, but is also unstable and possibly homeless. There is also an ex spouse who is vindictive. The applicant is squeaky clean - works in a position of trust for many years, great credit, clean record, never used drugs, has an in tact family and is very reliable. Is there any chance the applicant’s personal responsibility/achievement this could outweigh the crazy family members who would likely say super weird (unpredictable) stuff to an investigator?
Yes, there is a chance. That’s why we do these interviews - to give the applicant a chance to explain these situations and how it relates to them. This is also why the adjudicators look at the applicant as a whole person and don’t focus so much on individual circumstances. Best thing the applicant can do is be open and up front about these things during the interview. A lot will also depend on the job/clearance being applied for, but it is not hopeless.
What do you mean by “a lot will also depend on the job/clearance being applied for” ? I feel bad for the poster, I know what it feels like when someone else’s actions call your character into action for no reason.
Thank you for your reply. Your feedback is appreciated. It is a frustrating situation because the applicant cannot control what other people have done or continue to do. It sounds like the outcome will be very uncertain under the circumstances. Many people believe that the apple cannot fall far from the tree. The applicant understands that clearances are a privilege so it just may not be a privilege they can get due to the family they were born into Their career path for quite some time has been in law enforcement and the next steps in their career would require a high level clearance. Perhaps it is time for them to consider a transition into another field.
The applicant is the one who is being evaluated, not his family, unless he is cohabitating with them. There are many clearance holders who have relatives in prison, in mental treatment, using drugs, etc… As long as the applicant themselves is not participating in or putting themselves in a position where their own actions could be interpreted negatively they should have nothing to worry about. Already having been cleared for public trust duties is evidence of this.
I wouldn’t. The person who replied to me seems to have misunderstood what I said. The adjudicators look at the whole person (the applicant) and not individual circumstances (family members) individually. The entire point of the subject interview is for the applicant to explain the situation and how it relates to them so investigators can send the explanation to the adjudicators. The entire point of the background investigation in its entirety is so the adjudicators can see the whole big picture. I can say with 100% honesty that I come across a few subjects each week who have family members that have done things the subject would never do. The subject explains the situation, I put it in my report. Then I, and the other investigators who work on the case, go out and pull records and interview sources, and 99% of the time everything lines up where the records back up that the subject has had a great past, the neighbors and former coworkers give glowing reviews, etc. and the subject goes on to have the career they wanted. So no, given the situation you have described, I would still say that the applicant should absolutely not give up, apply for all the jobs they want, and let the background investigation do what it is supposed to do.