DHS denied request for Prince Harry’s records, think tank says

by Lauren Sforza - 06/14/23 5:52 PM ET

Prince Harry arrives at the High Court in London, Tuesday, June 6, 2023. Prince Harry is due at a London court to testify against a tabloid publisher he accuses of phone hacking and other unlawful snooping. Harry alleges that journalists at the Daily Mirror and its sister papers used unlawful techniques on an “industrial scale” to get scoops. Publisher Mirror Group Newspapers is contesting the claims. (AP Photo/Frank Augstein)

The Department of Homeland Security has denied The Heritage Foundation’s request for Prince Harry’s immigration records, the think tank said Wednesday, as it probes whether the department followed relevant rules in granting the royal his visa.

The Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank based in D.C., filed a lawsuit against the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) earlier this year after Harry, the Duke of Sussex, released his memoir “Spare,” which detailed how he used drugs in the past.

The think tank alleged the department “may have improperly granted” the visa because certain drug use could hinder someone from receiving a visa in the United States.

Nile Gardiner, the director of The Heritage Foundation’s Margaret Thatcher Center for Freedom, said in a statement to The Hill the think tank’s Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request for Harry’s immigration documents was denied. He wrote that the department’s attempts to “stonewall” the think tank’s request was “unacceptable.”

“On Tuesday The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) refused to confirm or deny whether or not they had records relating to the Duke of Sussex requesting a waiver in order to lawfully enter the country,” Gardiner wrote. “This response to The Heritage Foundation’s Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request shows an appalling lack of transparency by the Biden Administration.”

He wrote that the decision as to whether the immigration records will be released is up to the federal court, and the group is “determined to prevail in a matter of clear public interest.”

“We expected to have to fight every step of this case in federal court and will continue to press for transparency and accountability for the American people,” he added.

The Hill has reached out to DHS for comment.

Harry and his wife, Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, live in California after cutting ties with the British Royal family in 2020. Harry is also engaged in other legal battles, including filing a lawsuit against Mirror Group Newspapers, which he accused of hacking his phone and using illegal methods of obtaining information on him over the years.

— Updated at 8:00 p.m.

Tags Department of Homeland Security Meghan Markle Prince Harry Prince Harry