No opposition to restrictions on would-be Reagan assassin
Attorneys for the federal government have indicated that they will not oppose a plan to lift all remaining restrictions next month on John Hinckley Jr., the man who tried to assassinate President Ronald Reagan in 1981.
U.S. District Court Judge Paul Friedman in Washington ruled last year that Hinckley can be freed unconditionally in June if he continues to follow rules placed on him and remains mentally stable as he continues to live in Williamsburg, Virginia.
Hinckley, 66, has remained mentally stable and violated no conditions, according to a letter filed by U.S. attorneys with the court Thursday. That determination was based on letters from the Washington’s Department of Health, which has overseen Hinckley’s care.
“As such, the government has found no evidence to suggest that Mr. Hinckley’s unconditional release should not be granted as outlined,” the letter from the U.S. attorneys stated.
A court hearing is scheduled for June 1.
Hinckley was 25 when he shot and wounded the 40th U.S. president outside a Washington hotel. The shooting paralyzed press secretary James Brady, who died in 2014. It also injured Secret Service agent Timothy McCarthy and Washington police Officer Thomas Delahanty.
Hinckley was suffering from acute psychosis. When jurors found him not guilty by reason of insanity, they said he needed treatment and not a lifetime in confinement.
Such an acquittal meant Hinckley could not be blamed or punished for what he did, legal experts have said. Hinckley was ordered to live at St. Elizabeths Hospital in Washington.
In the 2000s, Hinckley started visiting his parents’ home in Williamsburg. A 2016 court order granted him permission to live with his mother full time, after experts said his mental illness had been in remission for decades.
Hinckley had to live under a long list of restrictions, which the judge has been loosening over the years. For instance, Hinckley was allowed to move out of his mother’s house. She died in July. He signed a lease for a one-bedroom apartment in the area last year and began living there with his cat, according to court filings.
There is no longer a ban on him talking to the media. But when Rolling Stone magazine requested an interview with Hinckley to talk about his music, Hinckley declined, according to court filings. “Mr. Hinckley sought the advice of his treatment team and therapy group before deciding to decline the invitation,” according to a report filed last year with the court.
Hinckley still must give three days’ notice if he wants to travel more than 75 miles from home. Other restrictions include barring Hinckley from traveling to places where he knows there will be someone protected by the Secret Service. He can’t contact any of his victims or their families.
He also can’t contact the actor Jodie Foster, with whom he was obsessed at the time of the shooting.