I completed my eQIP secret clearance application last week for a position with a company that is a DoD software contractor. i answered everything honestly and listed that i had been charged with a felony for marijuana possession 19 years ago.I pled to a deferred sentence that would be expunged pending me completing probation and community service. No jail time was served, I completed probation and community service flawlessly, and the case was expunged.
i have no other arrests or anything on my record. Completely clean.
Should I be worried about not being granted clearance?
19 years ago? You’ll most likely be fine.
You should be fine given the scant details you provided.
thank you for the feedback. To help on the scant details, is there something I can go deeper into for you?
Any Subject interview will uncover details through questioning.
Here are a few - why a felony for marijuana? What were the details of the arrest? (who was with you, why were you involved, how were you involved, where was the incident, what happened during and after the arrest? What were you doing when arrested?_ Were you growing/selling/distributing? Who arrested you. Who else was arrested with you. Why were you given a deferred sentence for a felony? What were the requirements for the deferred (withheld) sentence? How many times were you arrested/cited before and since this incident?
These are a few of the questions to be explored. Your responses would led to more questions. This is why no one but your adjudicator can truly say if you will get your clearance or not.
I was arrested as a juvenile for a pretty significant firearms-related charge. I was granted a Secret about a decade later, and last year, I was granted a TS. Just be open and honest about it on the SF-86 and with your investigator.
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