Conservative American think tank, the Heritage Foundation, has argued that Prince Harry’s drug use, which he detailed in his memoir, should lead to the release of his immigration paperwork. During a court hearing in Washington on Tuesday, the foundation appealed to U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols to expedite the process after the Department of Homeland Security deemed the request private. In January of this year, the Duke of Sussex released his memoir “Spare”, in which he discusses his past drug use, grief following the death of his mother, and disputes with his brother. Harry and his family relocated to Southern California in 2020 after leaving their royal duties.
The Heritage Foundation contends that there is significant public interest in whether Prince Harry received preferential treatment during the immigration application process. They believe that the case also ties in with broader immigration concerns in the U.S., particularly along the southern border with Mexico. John Bardo, an attorney for the Department of Homeland Security, stated that a person’s visa status is confidential. Although, the agency’s policy allows for the release of information on matters of public interest. Federal attorneys argued that the current inquiries have not warranted the swift processing that the Heritage Foundation is asking for since they do not raise serious questions about government wrongdoing.
Prince Harry’s representatives have yet to comment on the matter. The request by the Heritage Foundation has been mostly denied since they lack Prince Harry’s permission to acquire private information. While two of the three agencies involved have denied the request, the headquarters of the Department of Homeland Security has not responded formally, and they are resisting the foundation’s plea for urgent action. At the hearing, Nichols expressed discontent over having to make the narrow decision regarding the request’s fast processing. However, he announced that he would rule if the two parties failed to reach an agreement within a week.
In addition, Prince Harry is currently engaged in a lawsuit that pertains to privacy concerns. In a court hearing in London on the same day, Harry testified against the publisher of the Daily Mirror for 33 articles published between 1996 and 2011. The Duke of Sussex claimed that the articles were based on illegal snooping methods like phone hacking. While he criticized the role of tabloid press in his life, he faced queries from a newspaper’s lawyer about whether he had read the articles.
