Hey y’all! Hope your all doing good and staying safe with this pandemic going on. Well long story short I am 18 years old currently in the DEP Program for the army I ship out in June. Well when I was 15 years old I was charged with disorderly conduct for yelling with my mom and calling a cop a name. at court the prosecutor was very mad I was even charged and the judge found me Not guilty and sealed the court record later expunged the court record. My recruiter had me lie about this and I’ve been enlisted since January. I am all about integrity and I really screwed up. Every week we workout and I pressure him to update my sf86 to fix it because I don’t want to be screwed over. My MOS does not require a security clearance but down the road I probably will need one for deployment etc. what do I do? If I go through with this and ever get interviewed I would tell the investigator right off the bat about this immediately. Sorry for the paragraph I need advice thanks y’all!!!
Your recruiter should be reprimanded for leading you astray young one…heck prolly others too. From personal experience and from A quick research the interwebs…and I found this. Show this to your recruiter so you nor he gets in trouble. Read and watch the link thoroughly below. I think on the SF-86 “if you have ever” or “have you ever in the past 7 years” something along the lines of that, to which you should disclose it, regardless if you were under 18 I believe, unless it specifically states to go back only until your 18th birthday to which you would not need to report. But if you were put in for a Top Secret or a Secret clearance, I think that you would have to account for time going back before 18 if I am not mistaken. Also, You were a minor…under the influence by parent…trust me, it will not look bad against you in any way shape or form…but what would look bad is you not being transparent from the start when filling out the paperwork…shows untrustworthiness and lack of candor. But then again, your recruiter also guided you wrong. Get with them or your security office to make make the change or to fill out an SF-86C (Change form) -
Why do you think you are lying? I can’t even recall a SF-86 section that would ask a question that would require you to list this event? Was this a felony charge? Was there a large fine? Was alcohol involved?
@Weeble @Nicksm981 Disorderly conduct differs in that it is a “minor” criminal offense, but a criminal offense nonetheless, as it carries the potential for jail time. This is different that an infraction such a general speeding ticket, which usually carries only a fine. It can also be seen as a very low level of misdemeanor and should not pose to be a problem unless the security clearance allows for no misdemeanor convictions at all. He did not get any jail - a huge plus. And Yes, it can count and usually counts as a criminal conviction. It might not show up on a CLEAN or NLETS criminal history, however it is public record information. If you are applying for anything through a government agency, it will be discovered. That said, summary convictions are very minor, and while full disclosure is the best policy when making applications vetted through any level of government agency, a DC should not preclude you from employment. For instance, a single summary DC would not stop you from obtaining a security clearance from the federal government, all other factors being equal.
In any event, my advice as someone who has been through many similar application processes is to answer specific questions truthfully, meaning you can say you were never arrested for a misdemeanor or felony, but you cannot say you were never criminally charged or convicted of a criminal offense.
The general response is that it really depends upon the security clearance. There are various types of security clearances, and what may be viewed as a major concern by one may be seen less unfavorably than another. I personally, would treat an SF-86 for a public trust the same as if it was a Secret or TS.
Were you arrested, charged, (etc) in the last seven years for anything other than a traffic infraction less than $300? Then you report it.
The only areas that apply to the 18 year old rule are Residences and employment. Everything else is the period listed.
The latest and most stupid excuse I’ve heard lately is “My recruiter told me not to list that because the court record was protected by HIPPA”. (Three recruits who failed to report they were hospitalized for mental health review by court order used variations of this excuse).
Once you’ve submitted the forms you cannot alter them. Nor can a security office or recruiter. When/If you have an in-person interview explain everything that happened and why you did not disclose it on the SF86.
Hey thanks so much for the very detailed response. My recruiter and station commander will not let me add this to my sf86. I ship in two months and when I first walked into the recruiting office I disclosed it on the sf86 and the recruiter brought me in a room and said say no to everything they won’t find it and don’t say anything about this conversation because I will lose my job. I’ve been demanding that they fix it but they just won’t. Should I call the Boss of the recruiting station and tell him the recruiters are having me lie.? Or drop the DEP program and enlist in the marines/navy with a clean sf86
@Nicksm981 No problem, sorry for the late response. That is unfortunate and sad to hear how careless and ill-informed your recruiter is. Hate seeing so called “recruiters” either being ignorant or being a lying POS trying screw others taking shortcuts…I swear, some shouldn’t even be in that position, and there needs to be more oversight on them. You were misled by someone who’s duty it is to inform correctly and truthfully when it comes to the application process. What you just responded to me with, be sure to have that same response with higher chain of command about your recruiter and stress that a new SF-86 be submitted or changed. Here are some options and different approached depending on whtehr or not you want to continue on with the investigation. If you get contacted by an investigator, come clean and tell the investigator everything. INCLUDING exactly what your recruiter directed you to say/omit. Some investigators submit a form for Recruiter Falsification. It exists for a reason. Far too many cases like this one. These recruiters need to be punished. I know of at least several situations in which they have literally ruined someone’s life or future. It’s shameful. I am not trying to put all the blame on the recruiter, but it also falls in your hands as far as accountability goes, as you were the one who signed off in agreement even though you were naive. If you let this stall and they find out, they can say You lied at MEPS. That is fraudulent enlistment and if you disclose the truth in your Security clearance investigation, the Military may nail you for fraudulent enlistments and turn you right back out the door. go talk to JAG…ASAP to get legal counsel and protect yourself. See if you can reach the security manager or chief also. ASK AROUND and use your resources. There has got to be a way to report this incident before the investigation escalates any further. Or simply have them cancel that investigation and open up a new one by submitting a new SF-86. If all else fails and no one ends up doing their job, I personally would drop out the program and have them cancel your investigation (which I am sure will automatically be cancelled if you leave). Enlist with another group that cares and where you can come in clean. It is not worth it in my opinion to have lied on an SF-86, get cleared, then years later in your re-investigation or clearance upgrade, you get caught (which can happen now too) or you come clean. And if you decide to leave, and for chance if your investigation is not cancelled…and you get a call from an investigator.,…just tell them you left and to cancel the investiagtion…to which they will do so and nothing bad will come of it. Happened to me…as I was put in for a clearance with one company…but left for a better opportunity…but the company had not cancelled my investigation in the system, so I was still in the works over their…but once an investigator called, I explained the situation over phone and did not meet in person, and they marked it for cancellation within the system. Should you call the Boss of the recruiting station and tell him the recruiters are having you lie? Yes…so that it does not happen to others and so that recruiter can learn a lesson or two about proper code of conduct in relation to their civic duties.