The man who tried to kill Ronald Reagan soon totally free

WASHINGTON | John Hinckley Jr, the man who tried to kill US President Ronald Reagan in 1981 to impress actress Jodie Foster, may be completely free in June 2022.

According to court documents, a federal judge on Monday ratified an agreement between the Justice Department and Mr. Hinckley, who was released from a mental hospital in 2016 after 30 years of internment.

The rules of his judicial review will be completely lifted in nine months on condition that he continues to respect them and that he remains “mentally stable”, said Judge Paul Friedman during a hearing reported in the American media.

Mr. Hinckley, now 66, shot the US president outside the Washington Hilton hotel on March 30, 1981. He said he wanted to impress actress Jodie Foster, whom he had seen in the movie “Taxi driver”.

He had been declared criminally irresponsible by the courts.

One of his bullets ricocheted off the armored presidential limousine and hit Ronald Reagan in the chest, passing very close to the heart.

Three other people were injured, including James Brady, then White House spokesman, who remained partially paralyzed and with speech problems.



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