Category: fox-news/entertainment/events/in-court

Biden admin ordered to turn over Prince Harry’s immigration records amid preferential treatment claim

Posted on by Latest Political News on Fox News

A federal judge on Tuesday gave the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) one week to deal with requests for Prince Harry's immigration records after the agency was sued by the Heritage Foundation.

The Biden administration appeared in a federal court Tuesday after the conservative think tank filed a lawsuit demanding DHS release Prince Harry's immigration records, alleging the administration gave him "preferential treatment" in allowing entry to the U.S. 

The suit claimed that the Biden administration allowed the prince to enter the U.S. despite his admission of illegal drug use – a factor that would usually be enough to deny other people entry. 

Entities within DHS, including Border Patrol, denied the group's Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests for the documents, but DHS headquarters had yet to make a decision on the requests.

D.C. District Court Judge Carl Nichols gave DHS until June 13 to notify the court on whether it will expedite or respond to a request for the records.

PRINCE HARRY'S UK COURT BATTLE: ROYAL SAYS TABLOIDS WERE 'MAIN FACTOR' FOR BREAKUP WITH EX CHELSY DAVY

Heritage filed the original FOIA requests for the documents following the release of Prince Harry's bestselling memoir, "Spare," in which he admitted to using cocaine, psychedelics and marijuana.

When filling out a visa application, those drug abuses are supposed to be documented in detail, and would normally trigger a special review if not rejection of the application. However, the group is suspicious that Prince Harry was either not honest on his visa application, or that the Biden administration gave him preferential treatment.

DHS entities rejected the original FOIA request, citing privacy concerns for the British royal, who moved to Montecito, California, with his wife Meghan Markle in 2020. Lawyers for the agency also leveled that argument in court Tuesday.

Nile Gardiner, director of the foundation’s Margaret Thatcher Center, told Fox News Digital Wednesday the judge's urging of a swift decision from the administration is a "very positive development."

"This matter is being treated very seriously," he said. 

Gardiner said there is "strong public interest for the release of Prince Harry's immigration records, especially in light of his widespread admission and drug use in ‘Spare,’ his memoir."

PRINCE HARRY'S UK COURT SHOWDOWN: ROYAL FAILS TO SHOW UP FOR FIRST DAY, LEAVES JUDGE FRUSTRATED

"We believe that it is important that the public is aware of what he actually put in his immigration application. Did he outline in detail all his drug use as he was supposed to do? We also want to know whether he received any kind of preferential treatment for U.S. officials with regard to his visa application. So if there was any dishonesty on the application, that would be perjury and a criminal offense." he added.

DHS SUED FOR PRINCE HARRY’S IMMIGRATION RECORDS TO SEE IF HE LIED ABOUT DRUG USE

"The situation with Prince Harry's immigration application was that it was, it appears, to have been so fast-tracked, while most people wait many months, years to have their applications process. So it is in the public interest for immigration law to be applied fairly to everyone who applies without a favor or bias and so this is why there is a big public interest here," Gardiner said.

Heritage said in its lawsuit that while this case "focuses on the widespread public and press interest on the specific issue of whether DHS acted, and is acting, appropriately as regards the Duke of Sussex, it cannot be separated from its broader context." 

"The press and congressional hearing rooms are replete with detailed accusations that DHS is deliberately refusing to enforce the country’s immigration laws and is responsible for the current crisis at the border," the lawsuit said.

"[T]he broader controversy is so grave that Articles of Impeachment have been filed against DHS Secretary Alejandro N. Mayorkas and Secretary Mayorkas has taken the extraordinary step of retaining private counsel to represent him in impeachment proceedings," it said.

Chief Justice Roberts asked to testify in Senate on Supreme Court ethics amid Thomas controversy

Posted on by Latest Political News on Fox News

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Dick Durbin, D-Ill., on Thursday asked Chief Justice John Roberts testify on May 2 about ethics rules that govern the Supreme Court, as controversy continues to swirl around Justice Clarence Thomas' trips he took with a GOP mega-donor.

"I invite you, or another Justice whom you designate, to appear before the Senate Judiciary Committee on May 2, 2023, at 10:00 a.m. in room 216 of the Hart Senate Office Building to testify at a public hearing regarding the ethical rules that govern the Justices of the Supreme Court and potential reforms to those rules," Durbin said in a letter to Roberts on Thursday.

"In extending this invitation, I offer that the scope of your testimony can be limited to these subjects, and that you would not be expected to answer questions from Senators regarding any other matters," Durbin said.

AOC DOUBLES DOWN ON ‘IGNORING’ ABORTION RULE, CLARENCE THOMAS IMPEACHMENT: ‘ABUSE OF JUDICIAL OVERREACH’

Durbin asked Roberts this month to open an investigation into Thomas over what Democrats say is his "misconduct" that was detailed in a ProPublica report.

The liberal news outlet's report accused Thomas of improperly receiving lavish vacations from Republican mega donor Harlan Crow, which reportedly included taking trips across the world on Crow's yacht and private jet without disclosing them.

Expert have dismissed the ProPublica report as political hit piece and explained that justices are permitted to accept invites to properties of friends for dinner or vacations without paying for it or disclosing it.

Thomas released a rare statement following the report saying that he has consistently followed ethics guidelines.

DEMOCRATS PRESS SUPREME COURT CHIEF JUSTICE TO INVESTIGATE CLARENCE THOMAS' TRIPS WITH GOP MEGADONOR

"Harlan and Kathy Crow are among our dearest friends, and we have been friends for over twenty-five years," Thomas said.

"As friends do, we have joined them on a number of family trips during the more than quarter century we have known them. Early in my tenure at the Court, I sought guidance from my colleagues and others in the judiciary, and was advised that this sort of personal hospitality from close personal friends, who did not have business before the Court, was not reportable," Thomas said.

"I have endeavored to follow that counsel throughout my tenure, and have always sought to comply with the disclosure guidelines," he said. "These guidelines are now being changed, as the committee of the Judicial Conference responsible for financial disclosure for the entire federal judiciary just this past month announced new guidance. And, it is, of course, my intent to follow this guidance in the future."

REPORT ON CLARENCE THOMAS' TRAVEL HABITS IS 'POLITICS PLAIN AND SIMPLE': EXPERT

Durbin told Roberts Thursday that "there has been a steady stream of revelations regarding Justices falling short of the ethical standards expected of other federal judges and, indeed, of public servants generally."

"These problems were already apparent back in 2011, and the Court’s decade-long failure to address them has contributed to a crisis of public confidence. The status quo is no longer tenable," Durbin said.

Durbin added that "there is ample precedent for sitting Justices of the Supreme Court to testify before Congress, including regarding ethics. Durbin says the Judiciary Committee most recently heard testimony from sitting Justices in October 2011, and that hearing "included robust exchanges about the Court’s approach to ethics matters."

Fox News Digital's Brandon Gillespie contributed to this report.

Justice Thomas defends trips taken with ‘dearest friends’ after reports say he accepted gifts

Posted on by Latest Political News on Fox News

Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas issued a rare statement Friday to defend travel he took with his friends over many years, following reports that he failed to report travel-related gifts from a GOP mega-donor.

A ProPublica investigation published this week found that Thomas’ close friendship with real estate developer Harlan Crow allowed him to accompany the Texas billionaire on luxury vacations on his private jet and yacht, as well as free stays on Crow’s vast vacation property, among other perks.

But Thomas defended the trips and explained that he has always followed Supreme Court guidance.

"Harlan and Kathy Crow are among our dearest friends, and we have been friends for over twenty-five years," the justice, who has served on the bench for 32 years, said in a Friday statement.

PROGRESSIVE DEMOCRATS CALL FOR CLARENCE THOMAS IMPEACHMENT AFTER REPORTED UNDISCLOSED GIFTS FROM GOP MEGADONOR

"As friends do, we have joined them on a number of family trips during the more than quarter century we have known them. Early in my tenure at the Court, I sought guidance from my colleagues and others in the judiciary, and was advised that this sort of personal hospitality from close personal friends, who did not have business before the Court, was not reportable," Thomas said.

CLARENCE THOMAS REPORT SPURS NEW CALLS FROM DEMOCRATS FOR SUPREME COURT CODE OF ETHICS

"I have endeavored to follow that counsel throughout my tenure, and have always sought to comply with the disclosure guidelines," he said. "These guidelines are now being changed, as the committee of the Judicial Conference responsible for financial disclosure for the entire federal judiciary just this past month announced new guidance. And, it is, of course, my intent to follow this guidance in the future."

In a statement to ProPublica, Crow denied ever trying to influence Thomas or put him in positions where other influential people could do the same.

"The hospitality we have extended to the Thomas’s (sic) over the years is no different from the hospitality we have extended to our many other dear friends," part of the statement reads. "We have never asked about a pending or lower court case, and Justice Thomas has never discussed one, and we have never sought to influence Justice Thomas on any legal or political issue. More generally, I am unaware of any of our friends ever lobbying or seeking to influence Justice Thomas on any case, and I would never invite anyone who I believe had any intention of doing that."

SUPREME COURT BLOCKS WEST VIRGINIA FROM IMPLEMENTING 'SAVE WOMEN'S SPORTS' LAW AS STATE BATTLES ACLU

Last month, the Judicial Conference of the United States, which creates and oversees policies for federal courts, revised its ethics and financial disclosure guidelines to require the justices to disclose things like traveling by private jet and staying in resorts.

The ProPublica report sparked reaction from Senate Democrats who called for a strict code of ethics to be imposed on the nine justices.

Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said Thursday that Thomas’ alleged actions are "simply inconsistent with the ethical standards the American people expect of any public servant, let alone a Justice on the Supreme Court."

"Today’s report demonstrates, yet again, that Supreme Court Justices must be held to an enforceable code of conduct, just like every other federal judge," Durbin said in a Thursday statement. "The ProPublica report is a call to action, and the Senate Judiciary Committee will act."

Progressive Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., shared similar sentiments in her calls for accountability.

"The American people deserve a federal judiciary that is accountable to the rule of law, not wealthy Republican donors. Today's news is a stark reminder that judges should be held to the highest ethical standards and free from conflicts of interest," Warren wrote on Twitter

Fox News Digital's Elizabeth Elkind contributed to this report.

Kentucky Senate convicts former prosecutor in impeachment trial

Posted on by Latest Political News on Fox News

An ex-prosecutor accused of promising a defendant favors in court in exchange for nude images was convicted on three articles of impeachment Thursday, in the Kentucky Senate's first impeachment trial in more than a century.

Senators voted 34-0 to convict former state prosecutor Ronnie Goldy Jr. on each impeachment article. The action will bar Goldy from holding a future elected office in the state.

Goldy had failed to appear at a hearing last week before the Senate impeachment panel.

Goldy had served as commonwealth’s attorney for Bath, Menifee, Montgomery and Rowan counties. He resigned effective Feb. 28 after the impeachment articles were drafted. The House voted 97-0 last month to impeach Goldy.

ARMY BLACK HAWK HELICOPTERS CRASH, KILLING 9 SERVICE MEMBERS: OFFICIAL

An attorney who represented Goldy did not immediately respond to a phone call seeking comment.

Goldy has been embroiled in scandal since July, when the Courier Journal first reported hundreds of Facebook messages he exchanged with the defendant.

The defendant testified the Facebook messages were authentic and told a hearing officer for a bar inquiry commission that she and Goldy had sexual relations, with the prosecutor allegedly withdrawing warrants and getting her cases continued in exchange for the images, the newspaper reported.

In a written response to an inquiry from the House impeachment committee, Goldy defended himself by arguing that the nude photos and videos the woman sent him were "an extension of the friendship they had developed."