US government due in court over Prince Harry’s visa after his drug use admission
The US government is slated to appear in court next week for questioning on Prince Harry’s visa application after he admitted to using drugs in his memoir.
A judge will hear arguments from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the conservative think tank the Heritage Foundation at a federal court in Washington, DC. The hearing will take place on June 6 at 2.30pm local time, according to Niles Gardiner, director of the foundation’s Margaret Thatcher Center for Freedom.
The Heritage Foundation filed a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit earlier this month to press for the release of Harry’s visa application. But the US government has refused to disclose the Duke of Sussex’s immigration records.
Harry detailed his use of various recreational drugs including magic mushrooms, marijuana and cocaine in his best-selling memoir Spare, published in January.
US visa applicants are required to answer the question, ‘Are you or have you ever been a drug abuser or addict?’ by ticking a ‘yes’ or ‘no’ box. Drug use admission typically leads to a visa application denial under US law.
Harry’s admission in his tell-all led the Heritage Foundation to file the suit to compel the release.
The hearing scheduled for 2.30pm this coming Tuesday is a ‘very significant development’ and ‘significantly raises the stakes’, Gardiner told the Telegraph.
‘I think so far the Biden administration has been stonewalling the freedom of information request,’ said Gardiner. ‘But ultimately, this issue will be settled by a federal judge.’
Harry and his wife Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex, stepped back from serving as working members of the British royal family and moved to the US in March 2020.
Speaking about Spare, Harry said he felt ‘lost’ and ‘hopeless’ in his late 20s and used cocaine and weed.
‘I resorted to drinking heavily. Because I wanted to numb the feeling, or I wanted to distract myself from how… whatever I was thinking,’ he said. ‘And I would, you know, resort to drugs as well.’
It is in the public interest to disclose any waiver that Harry was granted and who made the decision to approve his visa, the Heritage Foundation argues.
‘The American people deserve answers to the serious questions raised by the evidence,’ stated the think tank on Tuesday.
‘Did DHS in fact look the other way, play favorites, or fail to appropriately respond to any potential false statements by Prince Harry?’
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