Prince Harry cheers on wounded military veterans at the Warrior Games in San Diego
Prince Harry beams and talks to onlookers in the stands as he cheers on wounded military veterans at the Warrior Games in San Diego
Prince Harry is on hand to support US Army veterans at the Warrior Games in San Diego.
The Duke of Sussex was seen grinning and chatting as he cheered on servicemen and women taking part in events similar to his own Invictus Games.
The royal spoke animatedly to families and clearly joked with those seated around him at the Southern California event.
He later looked relaxed as he posed with veteran United States Special Operations Command gold medalists.
It is the first time Harry has been seen in public since returning from London, where he testified before the High Court in his phone hacking trial against Mirror Group Newspapers. He was the first royal to testify in court in more than a century.
The Duke of Sussex was seen grinning and chatting as he cheered on servicemen and women taking part in events similar to his own Invictus Games.
Harry laughed and joked with people in the crowd with him
Harry spoke animatedly to families and clearly joked with those seated around him at the Southern California event
Prince Harry with the gold medalist SOCOM team at Warrior Games in San Diego
Harry has long been a supporter of veterans’ charities
His action came as the Department of Homeland Security has until today to respond to a legal demand to disclose Harry’s US visa papers, which could show he lied about his drug use.
The claims were made last week in the US District Court in Washington, 3,000 miles from the High Court in London, where he testified hours earlier in the lawsuit he brought against the publisher of the Daily Mirror.
The case relates to the Duke of Sussex’s US visa application in March 2020, which may have shown that he had checked ‘no’ when asked about his drug use.
Harry has admitted to using cocaine, marijuana and hallucinogens in his bestselling memoir ‘Spare’ and his Netflix TV series.
If it turns out that Harry lied on his visa forms, he could be deported from the US.
The allegations have been made by The Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank, which is seeking the release of the Department of Homeland Security documents under the US Freedom of Information law.
Samuel Dewey, the Heritage Foundation’s lead attorney, said the case can take months.
The next stage would be to discuss whether or not the documents themselves should be released.
Prince Harry, 38, poses for a photo with Tiktoker and flight attendant Holden Pattern, which was shared online on Friday
The Duke of Sussex, 38, outside the High Court where he testified last week
Dewey criticized the “downright frivolous anti-transparency stance” of President Joe Biden’s administration.
In court cases, the Heritage Foundation focused on two questions on the DS160 visa application form.
The first asks, “Have you ever been a drug abuser or addict?”
The second asks, “Have you ever violated a controlled substance law, or been involved in a conspiracy to violate it?”
The Heritage Foundation, one of Washington’s most influential conservative think tanks, argues that Harry’s admissions about his drug use meant he should have checked ‘yes’.
The Freedom of Information (FoI) application was submitted by Nile Gardiner, director of the foundation’s Margaret Thatcher Center for Freedom.
The United States Department of Homeland Security initially rejected the FoI because, due to the personal nature of the information, Harry’s consent was required and he had not given it.
Immigration experts have said Harry’s confessions could lead to him being banned from entering the US by a border agent.
During last night’s hour-long hearing, Judge Carl Nicholas gave the Department of Homeland Security a week to decide whether or not to expedite the case.
A spokesperson for Harry said they would not be commenting “at this time.”