Felony Road Rage Incident Mitigated by Self-Defense Claims

In one of the more intriguing Defense Office of Hearing and Appeals (DOHA) cases, this security clearance applicant overcame criminal and personal conduct concerns to get eligibility. The Department of Defense initially denied him a clearance based on being arrested in 2022 and charged with two felony counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. The applicant subsequently submitted his appeal in person before the DOHA judge. Here are the highlights of the case.

The applicant was involved in an incident where the driver of another vehicle intentionally kept the applicant from passing him, using “brake checks” and erratic driving that almost caused a collision several times. Eventually the applicant got past him by driving over a median but then got stuck in traffic with the other driver now behind him. Fearing for his safety, he got out of his car and confronted the other driver, who unexpectedly started punching the applicant in his head. He ran back to his car and got his legally registered firearm and held it at the ready in case the other driver tried to come at him again. The other driver and his passenger fled and drove away, but witnesses had already called the police and the applicant was subsequently arrested and charged.

During his appeal the applicant explained that after the incident happened, he found out the other driver was a habitual felon with a long rap sheet involving violent offenses. He was afraid for his life and used the minimum amount of force to de-escalate the situation, as he was taught in the Marine Corp. He had a valid legal permit to carry the weapon and never pointed it at anyone during the incident. He accepted a pretrial agreement from the court because he wanted to avoid the financial costs of retaining a lawyer and going to trial. The judge found his testimony credible and agreed that the subject’s self-defense claim was legitimate –clearance granted!