Before the start of summer, we posted an article about how investigators have likely seen worse than your own background. You may think it’s scandalous, and it’s a common question: What types of things can prevent someone from being approved for access to classified information or a security clearance altogether?
We solicited interesting background investigation scenarios that investigators have stumbled upon via the ClearanceJobsBlog to showcase to potential security clearance applicants that some things aren’t disqualifiers, and they should still be interested in national security careers even if they did something like, say, smoke weed in college. Or have an estranged family member who is in prison.
The thread continued, so here is part II to those peculiar situations.
YA FIRED
Subject was fired from two previous employers… she still got the job and clearance!
Smoking weed in college isn’t a rare case. It happens more than you think, and I am certain those people go on to get their clearance.
WITNESS PROTECTION OR POLICE EVASION?
I once interviewed a lady who had applied for a job with the Department of Interior and the SF 86 had very minimal information on it. During the interview I asked her to provide additional references to cover a full ten years and she said, no, I can’t. When asked why not, she said she was in the witness protection program, and no one was supposed to know her as who she was now. Well, come to find out later, she was actually in what I call the police evasion program and was wanted for fraud and embezzlement.
LEMONADE JOY RIDE
One of my favorites: subject was coming out of a bar and probably drank more than he should have. He saw a Lemonade truck idling at the curb, so he took it for a joy ride. It was an amusing story.
JUST MESSING AROUND…
Ok about 10 or 11 years ago when I was 18 and single, my friends from high school were messing around and convinced me to hire a hooker.
I am extremely ashamed of this and learned my lesson. It was a onetime thing. Never did it again. I have gotten multiple degrees in criminal justice, several years of law enforcement experience, constantly volunteer my time at local schools, have a girlfriend that I love, and my family and friends know about this dumb thing. I am a completely different man today.
The only reason agencies know is because I came clean about it immediately, but I think it has now become a problem and has put a major red flag on my character despite all the great accomplishments that I have made throughout my life after that.
This is such a hard pill to swallow.
It should be noted that this clearance applicant did NOT get the position they applied to for suitability reasons.
ALL THE ABOVE
One investigator notes a long list of applicants they ran into over the years:
Former strippers, current strippers, former meth-heads, current potheads, bestiality, polygamy, $700k in unsecured debt, tax evasion, wife beaters, husband beaters, child abusers…
The reality is, the path into a national security career can be broad – but the final gate quite narrow. Don’t let a single issue cause you to opt yourself out applying, however, particularly if you have mitigating circumstances in your favor. And also understand that whatever skeletons you may have in your closet, a background investigator somewhere has likely already pulled out worse.
