PSH-17-0063 - In the Matter of Personnel Security Hearing

On January 16, 2018, an OHA Administrative Judge issued a decision in which he determined that an individual’s DOE access authorization should be denied. The individual had habitually used alcohol to excess based upon his reported alcohol use history, admitted that he has an alcohol problem, and had been arrested for DUI’s on January 28, 2017, and November 1, 2014. After carefully considering all of the evidence in the record, the Administrative Judge found that the security concerns raised by the individual’s maladaptive alcohol use and criminal activity had not been sufficiently resolved. The Administrative Judge found that the individual had a pattern of misusing alcohol in an attempt to cope with grief, loneliness, anxiety, and depression, which resulted in his two DUIs. The Administrative Judge further found that although, after the first DUI, the Individual sought professional assistance, recognized that he had a problem with alcohol, and resolved to abstain from using alcohol, he subsequently decided that he would continue drinking, albeit in a limited and controlled fashion, and ultimately received a second DUI. The Administrative Judge concluded that although the individual now recognizes that he needs to abstain from using alcohol, and further realizes that, in order to avoid further maladaptive alcohol use, he needs to address his underlying grief, loneliness, anxiety, and depression, and to develop better coping and social skills, his recovery has not yet progressed sufficiently to resolve the security concerns raised by his history of repeated maladaptive alcohol use. The Administrative Judge found that the Individual’s criminal activity clearly results from his maladaptive alcohol use, and that as long as the Individual abstains from alcohol use, he would avoid further criminal activity. However, the Administrative Judge concluded, the converse is also true, the individual’s history shows that if he were to resume alcohol use, he is likely to engage in criminal activity again.  Accordingly, the Administrative Judge found that Individual’s recovery has not progressed far enough to sufficiently mitigate the security risk that he will consume alcohol again. Therefore, the Administrative Judge found that the individual had not resolved all of the security concerns raised by DOE. OHA Case No. PSH-17-0063 (Steven L. Fine).