A judge has ruled in Prince Harry's favor in regards to keeping his U.S. visa application private.
In January 2023, the Duke of Sussex released his memoir, Spare, in which he opened up about his life and some of the bad decisions he has made over the years. One of the things that he opened up about was taking drugs, including mushrooms and cocaine (and while people have pointed out his marijuana use, it is now legal in a number of states). And this admitted drug use led to a group questioning his visa application and wanting the details to be made public.
One of the reasons that some individuals wanted Prince Harry's visa application to be made public is because of the area of the form where they ask about a person's drug use. And it seems like there are people who want to see exactly what the prince had to say after having admitted to his previous bad behavior in his book.
A judge has denied the request to make Prince Harry's visa application public
So who was it that wanted to see the Duke of Sussex's application? That would be the Heritage Foundation, which is a conservative think-tank group. Why do they need to see what he added to his application? Likely for a "gotcha moment" similar to what has happened with the British Media, when they point out even the smallest details of where Prince Harry has gone wrong.
However, while people might be on the hunt for "gotcha" moments with Prince Harry, it won't be with the help of his visa application, as BBC News reports that a judge has denied that request. In fact, as they reported, on September 23 Carl Nichols, a U.S. judge has ruled that "the public does not have a strong interest in disclosure of the duke's immigration records".
Judge Nichols also made it clear that prince is entitled to some semblance of privacy. "Like any foreign national, the duke has a legitimate privacy interest in his immigration status."
It doesn't matter what Prince Harry's U.S. visa application says, as that is between him and the government. And while he may have been open and honest in his memoir, that doesn't mean that all of his life is up for discussion and dissection.
What do you think of this news that the request to have Prince Harry's application for his U.S. visa made public was denied? Do you believe that the judge made the right decision?