were also shot. Secret Service agent Timothy McCar-
thy jumped in front of the president, taking a bullet
to the abdomen. He was not scheduled to work on
March 30 but became part of that day’s protection
detail when he lost a coin toss with another agent.
White House press secretary James S. Brady had also
accompanied Reagan to the Washington Hilton Ho-
tel. He was standing a few feet away from the presi-
dent when Hinckley began firing. One of the bullets
struck Brady in the head, resulting in permanent
brain damage. A third bullet hit metropolitan police
officer Thomas Delehanty, who stood guard outside
the hotel. The three victims lay on the sidewalk as
security agents subdued Hinckley and held him
against the hotel wall. Stunned members of the
president’s entourage and bystanders tended to the
wounded and waited for help to arrive.
John Hinckley, Jr. Hinckley was a twenty-five-year-
old loner from Evergreen, Colorado. Seeking fame
and the attention of actor Jodie Foster, he decided to
kill the president of the United States. After watching
Martin Scorsese’s filmTaxi Driver
(1976), Hinckley began to identify
with the main character, played by
Robert De Niro, who plots the as-
sassination of a U.S. senator while
wooing a prostitute played by Fos-
ter. Hinckley decided to repeat De
Niro’s performance in real life, ex-
cept that his victim would be the
president. In 1979, Hinckley had
stalked President Jimmy Carter
but never made an attempt on his
life. Two years later, he nearly
killed Reagan. In 1982, Hinckley
was tried for attempted murder.
The court found him not guilty by
reason of insanity. Hinckley was
committed to St. Elizabeths Hospi-
tal in Washington, D.C.Victims’ Recovery Reagan’s de-
meanor, both during and after the
shooting, enhanced his public im-
age. With a bullet lodged near his
heart, he walked into the emer-
gency room and even joked with
doctors and nurses. Before going
under anesthesia, Reagan good-
naturedly asked his surgeons if they were Republi-
cans. One doctor replied, “Today, Mr. President,
we’re all Republicans.” Reagan underwent three
hours of surgery and several weeks of recovery. His
unflagging spirit cemented his image as a courageous
president.
Hinckley’s other three victims also survived the
shooting. Brady was the most seriously injured. Al-
though he remained the White House press secre-
tary throughout the Reagan administration, Brady
never fully recovered from his wound. Suffering
from permanent partial paralysis, he became an ad-
vocate for gun control. Brady and his wife, Sarah,
formed the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Vio-
lence and began lobbying for stronger gun control
laws.Impact The assassination attempt inspired some
states to pass laws limiting the use of the insanity plea
in trials. In the 1980’s, twelve states adopted a “guilty,
but mentally ill” plea. Four of these states changed
their laws because of the Hinckley verdict. New gun806 Reagan assassination attempt The Eighties in America
Secret Service agents and police surround and overpower would-be assassin John
Hinckley, Jr., as White House press secretary James Brady lies unconscious on the pave-
ment on March 30, 1981.(AP/Wide World Photos)