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Prince Harry's drug use cited in push to release visa records by conservative US group

By 9Honey|

A US federal judge has given the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) until next Tuesday to decide how it will handle a conservative think tank's request for Prince Harry's US immigration records.

The Heritage Foundation has asked the US government via the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) to see his visa application, citing his admission of past recreational drug use in his memoir, Spare.

The group is questioning whether immigration officials properly granted Prince Harry's application, since admission of past drug use can be grounds to reject a visa application.

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Prince Harry
A federal judge has given the Department of Homeland Security until next Tuesday to decide how it will handle a conservative think tank's request for Prince Harry's US immigration records. (Hannah McKay/Reuters/File)

The hearing on Tuesday (Wednesday AEST) in Washington, DC, played out, coincidently, as the Duke of Sussex himself testified in London in another lawsuit he has filed against British newspapers.

Federal judge Carl Nichols gave DHS until June 13 to determine whether or not it will expedite or respond to a request for the records, saying he would rule if they could not reach an agreement on their own.

READ MORE: Prince Harry back in the witness box for second day of testifying in case against UK tabloid?

Several agencies within the department, including US Border Patrol, have denied the FOIA requests, but the agency's headquarters has not yet made a determination.

The conservative American think tank argued the past drug use that Prince Harry detailed in his explosive memoir should spark the release of his immigration paperwork, which the US government has so far deemed private.

Harry moved to Southern California with his wife Meghan Markle and their young family in 2020 after they left royal life and embarked on new projects, including the release of his memoir in January.

Still image from Harry & Meghan docuseries episodes 3-6
Prince Harry and Meghan have blamed the press intrusion for their decision to move from the UK to the US in their Netflix series. (Netflix)

The book's myriad revelations included an exploration of Harry's grief after the death of his mother, Princess Diana, disputes with his brother William and his past drug use.

Harry said he took cocaine several times starting around age 17, in order "to feel. To be different." He also acknowledged using cannabis and psychedelic mushrooms.

The US routinely asks about drug use on its visa applications, and it has been linked to travel headaches for celebrities, including chef Nigella Lawson, singer Amy Winehouse, and model Kate Moss. But acknowledgement of past drug use doesn't necessarily bar people from entering or staying in the country.

With that history in mind, the conservative Heritage Foundation sent a public-information request to the Department of Homeland Security for Prince Harry's immigration records.

It argues there is "intense public interest" in whether Harry got special treatment during the application process. The politically conservative group also linked those questions to wider immigration issues in the US, including at the southern border with Mexico.

Members of staff place the copies of the new book by Prince Harry called "Spare" at a book store in London, Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023.
Attorney Samuel Dewey, who represents Heritage, said Prince Harry's privacy on the issue of past drug use has been "extraordinarily diminished" given his public remarks on the subject. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

Attorneys for the Heritage Foundation see the case as part of a larger effort to uncover non-compliance with the law by DHS in different areas จC including accusations from Republican lawmakers that DHS is "deliberately refusing to enforce the Country's immigration laws and is responsible for the current crisis at the border", court filings read.

When asked about the privacy aspect of the records request, attorney Samuel Dewey, who represents Heritage, said Harry's privacy on the issue of past drug use has been "extraordinarily diminished" given his public remarks on the subject.

"We're only focused on the specific issue that's drawn all the press attention: the drug use," Dewey said.

"He's talked about, he's written about it extensively. He has waved any privacy interest he has in his drug use. He has bragged about it (in his memoir) and sold that."

To CNN, Dewey added: "This is a case that concerns Prince Harry, but what it's focused on is DHS's conduct."

Harry memoir Spare
Biggest bombshells from Prince Harry's memoir, Spare

The request has largely been denied since the group doesn't have Prince Harry's permission to get the private information.

"A person's visa status is confidential," said John Bardo, an attorney for the Department of Homeland Security.

The agency's policy does allow the release of information about issues of public interest, but the agency argued that media coverage of how Harry's drug use connects to his visa status in the US hasn't been widespread among mainstream American publications.

The questions that have been raised, meanwhile, aren't the kind of weighty queries about possible government misdeeds that warrant the fast processing the Heritage Foundation is asking for, federal attorneys argued.

A representative for Harry did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment.

Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex leaves after giving evidence at the Mirror Group Phone hacking trial at the Rolls Building at High Court on June 06, 2023 in London
Privacy is also at the centre of the lawsuit Harry filed against the publisher of the Daily Mirror that was the subject of his testimony in London across Tuesday and Wednesday. (Leon Neal/Getty Images)

Privacy is also at the centre of the lawsuit Harry filed against the publisher of the Daily Mirror that was the subject of his testimony in London across Tuesday and Wednesday.

That suit is playing out thousands of kilometres away over 33 articles published between 1996 and 2011. He claims they were based on phone hacking or other illegal snooping methods.

Harry testified that Britain's tabloid press had a "destructive" role throughout his life, but also faced sharp questioning from a newspaper's lawyer about whether he could remember reading the articles.

- Reported with Associated Press and CNN.

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