The Heritage Foundation's lawsuit seeking Prince Harry’s visa records following his admissions of drug use has been closed after sealed rulings were issued, leaving the outcome and future of the documents unclear.
A high-profile legal battle between the Heritage Foundation and the Department of Homeland Security over Prince Harry's U.S. visa status has come to an abrupt close. The conservative think tank had sought to make public Prince Harry’s immigration records following his candid admissions of drug use in his 2023 memoir, "Spare."
However, on Monday, September 9, 2024, Judge Carl J. Nichols, after reviewing several sealed orders, ruled that the case would be terminated, though the reasons remain undisclosed according to InTouch.
The controversy began when Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, revealed in his memoir that he had used various substances, including cocaine, marijuana, and psychedelic drugs. The Heritage Foundation argued that these admissions should have affected his eligibility to live and work in the United States.
The organization filed a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit in May 2023, demanding that the Department of Homeland Security release Harry's visa records to the public.
Citing Harry's own words, the think tank questioned whether the Duke had received special treatment due to his royal status during the visa application process. Heritage’s legal team pointed to Harry’s explicit accounts of drug use, including his use of cocaine during a hunting weekend and his therapeutic experiments with psychedelics, as detailed in his memoir.
On the opposing side, government lawyers defended Prince Harry’s privacy rights, emphasizing that releasing his visa documents would be an inappropriate invasion of privacy.
The legal team representing the U.S. government argued that even confirming the existence of such records could cause undue harm to the prince, especially concerning his immigration or visa status in the United States.
Earlier in the case, in April 2024, Judge Nichols had requested to review Prince Harry’s visa documents in private. Government attorneys complied with this request, although no further public disclosures were made. Since then, sealed orders have played a significant role in the case, ultimately leading to its unexpected closure.
Central to the lawsuit was the Heritage Foundation’s assertion that Harry’s drug use should have had consequences for his immigration status.
Their legal team remarked that Prince Harry’s admissions, made voluntarily and for substantial profit through the publication of *Spare*, exposed controlled substance violations that would typically impact non-citizens’ ability to enter or remain in the U.S.
Prince Harry, meanwhile, described his drug experiences in candid detail in his book. Reflecting on his use of psychedelic substances, he noted that while drugs did not make him feel happy, they allowed him to "redefine reality" and provided a therapeutic outlet.
In his memoir, Harry wrote about using mushrooms and ayahuasca to confront personal and emotional struggles, describing the insights and realizations he gained through these experiences.
Despite these admissions, the Heritage Foundation’s attempt to access Prince Harry’s visa records was ultimately halted without a clear resolution.
Judge Nichols reviewed the government’s case, which included classified or sealed documents, and determined that the lawsuit should be closed. However, the specific reasons for this decision remain undisclosed, leaving questions about the case’s impact unanswered.
One central point of contention throughout the proceedings was whether Harry’s visa records if released, would reveal inconsistencies or preferential treatment. While the Heritage Foundation raised concerns about transparency, the court's closed-door handling of the case has left many of these questions unresolved.
The U.S. government consistently maintained that Prince Harry’s privacy outweighed any public interest in the release of his immigration records. Lawyers representing the government expressed concern that acknowledging the existence of Harry’s visa documents would create unnecessary exposure for the prince, given the sensitive nature of immigration matters.
For its part, the Heritage Foundation criticized this stance, arguing that the public had a right to know whether Prince Harry was treated differently from other visa applicants, especially considering his past drug use. They suggested that the case could set a precedent for other high-profile individuals, influencing how visa regulations are applied to non-citizens with similar backgrounds.
Though the case has been closed, the lack of clarity surrounding the decision leaves lingering questions. Was there any truth to the Heritage Foundation’s claims that Harry received special treatment? Did the prince's admissions of drug use play any role in his immigration status? And most importantly, will Prince Harry’s visa records ever be made public?
At this time, it seems unlikely that further details will emerge unless future legal action or investigative journalism reveals more about the closed court rulings. The sealed nature of the court orders means that for now, both the public and the Heritage Foundation will have to remain in the dark about the full scope of the decision.