PSH-24­-0089 - In the Matter of Personnel Security Hearing

On June 5, 2024, an Administrative Judge determined that an Individual's access authorization should not be restored under 10 C.F.R. Part 710. The Individual was arrested and charged with DUI in October 2023. The local security office (LSO) issued the Individual a letter of interrogatory (LOI), and in the Individual's response he admitted to consuming alcohol to intoxication two to four times monthly and to operating a vehicle while intoxicated one or two times in the prior year. In his response to the LOI, the Individual also reported having consumed more alcohol on the day of his arrest for DUI than he had previously reported to the LSO. The Individual subsequently met with a DOE-contracted psychiatrist (DOE Psychiatrist). The Individual's account of his alcohol consumption during his evaluation by the DOE Psychiatrist was not entirely consistent with his earlier accounts to the LSO. The DOE Psychiatrist concluded that the Individual habitually or binge consumed alcohol to the point of impaired judgment and recommended that the Individual demonstrate rehabilitation through one year of abstinence or greatly reduced consumption of alcohol. At the hearing, the Individual brought forth information to resolve the security concerns under Guideline E. However, as the Individual had not established the period of abstinence or reduced alcohol consumption recommended by the DOE Psychiatrist, the DOE Psychiatrist opined that the Individual had not demonstrated rehabilitation, and the Individual expressed a desire to return to social drinking which the DOE Psychiatrist characterized as risky, the Administrative Judge concluded that the Individual had not resolved the security concerns under Guidelines G and J. Therefore, the Administrate Judge determined that the Individual's access authorization should not be resolved. (OHA Case No. PSH-24­0089, Harmonick)