Psych eval flagged me "unsuitable" for dishonesty over medication history from when I was a minor. Realistic chances?
Applying to a mid-size PD. Made it through the full process, but the psych eval came back "unsuitable," and the report specifically cited dishonesty as the core concern, not just the underlying mental health history itself.
as a teenager, almost 5 years ago now, I went through significant personal loss and family stress, and had a documented period of self-harm and a couple of hospital visits as a result. I went voluntarily both times, on my own initiative, because I wanted to speak to someone. I didn't have real coping mechanisms at that age, which I don't think would be the case now as an adult with a different support system and more life experience. During one of those visits, a doctor presented medication as an option for treatment. My parent, who was the one making treatment decisions since I was a minor, chose therapy instead.
I told the evaluator I was never prescribed any medication and denied any recent history of self-harm, since my memory of that period is genuinely fuzzy I didn't even remember the conversation. The records didn't fully match what I said. On the medication piece specifically, the report treated it as "failure to follow through with recommended treatment," but the decision not to pursue medication wasn't mine to make at the time, and I was never told medication had been discussed as a recommended treatment.
I did attend therapy afterward for about a year or two as a teenager, and I've had no incidents or symptoms since that period, almost 5 years now. I'm currently a corrections officer with a strong performance record, remain mentally balanced today, and have no other background issues.
My recruiter told me he can push my file forward if the psych report's wording changes. I'm submitting a written addendum to the eval vendor addressing the discrepancies directly, along with a supporting statement from my parent confirming the treatment decision was hers to make at the time.
Has anyone seen an "unsuitable due to dishonesty" finding get revised through something like this? Does the "I was a minor and didn't make the treatment decision myself" argument tend to land with these evaluators, or is a documented discrepancy between self-report and records basically a dead end regardless of context?
And if this department doesn't work out, does this kind of finding tend to follow you to other agencies?
Posted Aug 13, 2026, 5:03 PM UTC