Difference between revisions of "John W. Hinckley"
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'''John W. Hinckley''' was the attempted assassin of [[President]] [[Ronald Reagan]]. | '''John W. Hinckley''' was the attempted assassin of [[President]] [[Ronald Reagan]]. | ||
| − | On 30 March 1981, he fired six times at the President, who was leaving the Hilton Hotel in [[Washington D.C.]] Reagan suffered a serious chest wound, and also shot were the Press Secretary [[James Brady]], a police officer, and a [[United States Secret Service|Secret Service]] agent. All of them survived. After his recovery, | + | On 30 March 1981, he fired six times at the President, who was leaving the Hilton Hotel in [[Washington D.C.]] Reagan suffered a serious chest wound, and also shot were the Press Secretary [[James Brady]], a police officer, and a [[United States Secret Service|Secret Service]] agent. All of them survived. After his recovery, Reagan's popularity increased. |
Hinckley purchased the gun outside the District of Columbia, which has some of the most restrictive [[gun control]] ordinances in the nation. | Hinckley purchased the gun outside the District of Columbia, which has some of the most restrictive [[gun control]] ordinances in the nation. | ||
Revision as of 03:17, September 11, 2008
Template:Expand John W. Hinckley was the attempted assassin of President Ronald Reagan.
On 30 March 1981, he fired six times at the President, who was leaving the Hilton Hotel in Washington D.C. Reagan suffered a serious chest wound, and also shot were the Press Secretary James Brady, a police officer, and a Secret Service agent. All of them survived. After his recovery, Reagan's popularity increased.
Hinckley purchased the gun outside the District of Columbia, which has some of the most restrictive gun control ordinances in the nation.
Hinckley was tried in 1982, and found not guilty by reason of insanity. To this day he is held in a psychiatric hospital, but there is a push for his release.
The Democratic controlled House of Representatives and gun control activists used the incident to press for new federal legislation. The variance of state and local laws, and lack of information sharing that allowed a man with a history of mental illness to purchase a gun became the pretext for regulating purchasers and sellers of guns, many who were also NRA members and enthusiastically supported President Reagan in 1980. Sarah and Jim Brady were invited to testify.
Timothy McCarty, the secret service agent shot by Hinkley, campaigned against the availability of cheap handguns available to criminals. President Bill Clinton signed the Brady Bill into law. The bill included a federal mandatory waiting period before purchasing a handgun.[1] [2]