Attempted assassination of Ronald Reagan

An assassination attempt on Ronald Reagan, the 40th President of the United States, was made on March 30, 1981 in Washington, D.C.. John Hinckley Jr. shot Reagan as he walked to his car after speaking at the Washington Hilton hotel. Hinckley did it to get the attention of actress Jodie Foster. He became obsessed with her after watching the 1976 movie Taxi Driver.

A bullet hit Reagan under his left arm. It broke a rib, punctured a lung, and caused serious internal bleeding. Doctors did emergency surgery at George Washington University Hospital. Reagan left the hospital on April 11. While Reagan was in surgery, the Twenty-fifth Amendment was never used. Secretary of State Alexander Haig said that he was "in control here" at the White House until Vice President George H. W. Bush returned from Texas. Haig was fourth in the line to replace Reagan; ahead of him were Bush, Speaker of the House Tip O'Neill, and President pro tempore of the Senate Strom Thurmond.

Hinckley also wounded three other people: James Brady (the White House Press Secretary), Tim McCarthy (a Secret Service agent), and Thomas Delahanty (a police officer). All three survived, but Brady had brain damage and later could not walk. He died in 2014 from his injuries.

On June 21, 1982, a jury found Hinckley not guilty by reason of insanity on the charge of trying to kill the president. He was sent to St. Elizabeths Hospital in Washington, D.C., and stayed there until 2016.

Background
John Hinckley Jr. had a mental illness called erotomania. He became obsessed with actress Jodie Foster. While living in Hollywood in the late 1970s, he saw the movie Taxi Driver at least 15 times. In the movie, the main character, Travis Bickle, tries to kill a United States senator who is running for president. 

Over the next few years, Hinckley followed Foster around the country. In 1980, he joined a writing class at Yale University after reading in People magazine that Foster was a student there. He wrote many letters and notes to her in the late 1970s. He also called her twice, even after she said she did not like him.

Hinckley thought he could win Foster’s attention if he became famous. He decided to act like Bickle in the movie and began following President Jimmy Carter. He was surprised at how close he could get to the president. At one event, he stood only a foot away from Carter. In October 1980, he was arrested at Nashville International Airport for carrying a gun illegally. Carter had made a campaign stop there, but the FBI did not tell the Secret Service about Hinckley’s arrest. They did not think it was connected to Carter’s visit. 

Hinckley’s parents later put him under the care of a psychiatrist for a short time. In early March 1981, he wrote more notes to Foster. She gave them to a Yale dean, who passed them to the Yale police. The Yale police looked for Hinckley, but stopped looking a few weeks before the shooting.

Assassination attempt
Early events
On March 28, 1981, Hinckley took a bus to Washington, D.C. He checked into the Park Central Hotel. At first, he wanted to travel to Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut to see Jodie Foster and try to make her love him. Instead, he read President Ronald Reagan’s schedule in The Washington Star newspaper and decided it was time to act. Hinckley knew he might die during the shooting. About two hours before, he wrote a letter to Foster but did not mail it. In the letter, he said he wanted to impress her. He also wrote that he would give up the plan to shoot Reagan if he could only "win her heart and live with her".

On March 30, Reagan gave a speech to AFL–CIO leaders at the Washington Hilton. The Hilton was thought to be very safe because of its private tunnel called "President’s Walk". The tunnel had been built after President John F. Kennedy was killed in 1963. Reagan entered through the passageway and waved to reporters and people in the crowd. Normally, the Secret Service had him wear a bulletproof vest. But that day, Reagan did not wear one because he did not think he would be outside for a long time. Hinckley also arrived outside the hotel. People who stood near him later said he acted normally.

Shooting

At 2:27 p.m. on March 30, Reagan left the hotel through "President’s Walk". Reporters waited outside. Hinckley stood in the crowd. The Secret Service had not checked the people waiting there. People clapped as Reagan walked past them to go in the limousine. Reporters stood behind a rope barrier about 20 feet (6 m) away. As one reporter shouted, "Mr. President—", Hinckley moved closer to the front. He pulled out a Röhm RG-14 revolver and fired six shots in 1.7 seconds.

The first bullet hit White House Press Secretary James Brady in the head above his left eye. It went through his brain and broke his skull. Hinckley had made the bullets explosive, and one exploded inside Brady’s head. The second bullet hit District of Columbia police officer Thomas Delahanty in the back of his neck. He had turned to look for the shooter, and the bullet got stuck in his spine.

Hinckley now had a good view of Reagan. But Alfred Antenucci, a labor official from Cleveland, saw Hinckley shooting. He hit Hinckley in the head and began pushing him to the ground. Special Agent Jerry Parr then grabbed Reagan by the shoulders and pushed him toward the open door of the limousine. Agent Ray Shaddick followed and helped push both men inside. The third bullet missed Reagan and hit a window across the street. Many later said that Parr’s quick action saved Reagan from being shot in the head.

As Parr pushed Reagan into the limousine, Secret Service agent Tim McCarthy stepped in front of the president. He spread his arms and legs to make himself a bigger target. The fourth bullet hit him in the lower chest. It hit his right lung, his diaphragm, and the right side of his liver.

The fifth bullet hit the bulletproof glass of the limousine as Reagan and Parr moved behind it. The sixth and final bullet bounced off the side of the limousine. It passed through the space between the open door and the frame. It then hit Reagan under his left arm. The bullet passed a rib, got stuck in his lung, and made it collapse. It stopped less than an inch (25 mm) from his heart.

Right after the first shots, Secret Service agent Dennis McCarthy jumped on Hinckley. Other people pushed Hinckley to the ground. Another Cleveland labor official, Frank J. McNamara, joined Alfred Antenucci and punched Hinckley in the head, making him bleed. Dennis McCarthy later said he had to hit two citizens to get them to leave Hinckley alone. 

The next day, officials gave Hinckley’s gun to the ATF. Agents learned in just 16 minutes that the gun had been bought at Rocky’s Pawn Shop in Dallas, Texas on October 13, 1980. The gun had six “Devastator” brand bullets. Each one carried a small amount of explosives. On April 2, doctors wearing bulletproof vests removed the bullet from Thomas Delahanty’s neck, worried that it might still explode.

Reagan hospitalized
After Secret Service agents first reported "shots fired" on their radios, they sped away with Reagan in the limousine. At first, no one knew he had been shot. Agent Jerry Parr checked Reagan’s body and found no blood, so he told the driver to go to the White House. Reagan felt great pain near his rib and thought Parr had cracked it while pushing him into the car. When Parr checked again, Reagan coughed up blood. Reagan believed he had only cut his lip, but Parr thought a rib had punctured his lung. Parr then told the driver to go to George Washington University Hospital. After hearing this news, First Lady Nancy Reagan quickly left the White House to go to her husband.

The limousine reached the hospital less than four minutes after leaving the hotel. Reagan stepped out and tried to act normally as he walked inside. But he told others he could not breathe and quickly fell to one knee. Parr and other agents helped him into the emergency room. At first, doctors thought Reagan was having a heart attack. The medical team, led by Dr. Joseph Giordano, cut off Reagan’s suit to check for wounds. Reagan later joked that he was not happy about his new suit being ruined. Military officers, including the one carrying the nuclear football, tried to stop FBI agents from taking Reagan’s suit and wallet as evidence.

Doctors found that Reagan’s blood pressure was only 60, instead of the normal 140. This showed he was in shock, and they knew most 70-year-olds would not survive. But Reagan was in good health, and the bullet was small: a .22 ()-caliber bullet instead of a larger one. Doctors soon found the entry wound but not an exit wound, which meant the bullet was still inside him. Nearby, other doctors worked on James Brady and agent Tim McCarthy.

When Nancy Reagan entered the emergency room, Reagan told her, "Honey, I forgot to duck". Later, while on a  breathing tube, he wrote a note to a nurse that said, "All in all, I’d rather be in Philadelphia". Within 30 minutes, Reagan left the emergency room for surgery, and his blood pressure was back to normal. Surgeons checked for organ damage and removed the bullet. Dr. Benjamin L. Aaron did the surgery, which lasted 105 minutes. Reagan had lost more than half his blood but the bullet was removed without any problems.
In the operating room, Reagan pulled off his oxygen mask to make a joke. He said, “I hope you are all Republicans," which made the doctors and nurses laugh. Dr. Giordano, a Democrat, later said, "Today, Mr. President, we are all Republicans". After surgery, Reagan began having a fever, but doctors treated it with antibiotics.

Reagan's recovery
Reagan left the hospital on the morning of April 11, 1981, twelve days after the shooting. Doctors were happy with how quickly he recovered. They told him not to work very hard, so his first weekend back was not busy with only a few visitors. At first, Reagan worked only two hours a day. He did not lead Cabinet meetings or hold press conferences for a few weeks. Even years later, Reagan said he still felt the effects of the shooting.

The attack made Reagan more popular with the public. His approval rating rose to 70%. Reagan also said he believed God had saved his life so that he could go on to do good things.

White House and cabinet response
While Reagan was in the hospital, the response of people working at the White House was not well organized. Normally, National Security Advisor Richard Allen would take charge of the executive branch. But Secretary of State Alexander Haig wanted to be in control instead. When the news of the shooting reached the White House, Haig was already there. He called Vice President George H. W. Bush, who was visiting Texas for the first time since the inauguration. The phone line to Bush’s plane, Air Force Two, was weak. By 2:35 p.m., Bush learned about the attack. At first, he thought Reagan was not hurt, so he went to Austin to give a speech. At 3:14 p.m., about 47 minutes after the shooting, Haig sent a teletype message to Bush:

Chief of Staff James A. Baker and Counselor to the President Edwin Meese went to the hospital, still thinking Reagan was not hurt. Within five minutes of the shooting, Cabinet members began meeting in the White House Situation Room. They worried the Soviet Union might take advantage of the crisis to launch a nuclear attack. Soon after, the U.S. military found two Soviet missile submarines near the East Coast. Defense secretary Caspar Weinberger put the Strategic Air Command on high alert. At the time, some people even thought the Soviets might have been behind the shooting. Inside the White House, Haig, Weinberger, and Allen argued about the presidential line of succession. Using the Twenty-fifth Amendment was talked about, but never used. This amendment would have given presidential powers to Vice President Bush for a short time.

When Reagan went into surgery, Haig told others, "The helm is right here. And that means right in this chair for now, constitutionally, until the vice president gets here". But Haig was wrong. As secretary of state, he was fourth in line: behind Vice President Bush, Speaker of the House Tip O'Neill, and Senate president pro tempore Strom Thurmond. Although others in the room knew Haig was wrong, they did not correct him.

At the same time, a press conference was happening at the White House. CBS reporter Lesley Stahl asked deputy press secretary Larry Speakes who was running the government. Speakes answered, "I cannot answer that question at this time".  After hearing this, Haig wrote a note to Speakes telling him to leave quickly. Moments later, Haig walked into the press room and said falsely:

Reporter Lesley Stahl said Haig was "visibly shaken". The Associated Press wrote that he sounded nervous. People in the Situation Room said they laughed when they heard Haig say, "I am in control here". Richard Allen later said, "I was [shocked] that he would say something [so] stupid". Haig later said:

After Haig returned to the Situation Room, some Cabinet members thought he was not doing his job well. This made Haig angry, and he told them to "read the Constitution". Vice President Bush landed at Andrews Air Force Base later that night. He chose not to fly by helicopter to the White House, but instead went to his home at Number One Observatory Circle. Bush then took charge of the Situation Room meeting and later gave a live speech at 8:20 p.m.:

After the shooting
Hinckley trial
Hinckley was arrested shortly after the shooting. The FBI searched his hotel room and found the letter he wrote to Jodie Foster. They also found pictures of President Reagan and First Lady Nancy Reagan. The FBI soon believed Hinckley had acted alone and was obsessed with Foster. At first, Hinckley was held at Marine Corps Base Quantico. Later, he was moved to the Federal Correctional Complex in Butner, North Carolina. While in prison, he tried to kill himself twice, in May and November 1981. 

During his trial, Hinckley wanted Foster to speak. She agreed, but only with a small number of people in the courtroom. In March 1982, during her testimony, Foster did not look at him or speak to him. Hinckley reacted by throwing a pen at her and shouting threats. Since then, Foster has rarely spoken about Hinckley or the shooting in interviews.

On June 21, 1982, Hinckley was found not guilty by reason of insanity. Doctors for the defense said he was insane. He was sent to St. Elizabeths Hospital in Washington, D.C. He stayed there full-time until 2006. That year, he was given permission to spend part of his time at his mother’s home. On September 10, 2016, Hinckley was allowed to leave the hospital for good. After his trial, he wrote that the shooting was "the greatest love [gift] in the history of the world" and said that he was not sorry about it. Many Americans were angry about the not-guilty verdict. Retrieved March 3, 2007. In response, Congress and many states rewrote laws about the insanity defense. Some states made it harder to use the defense, while others banned it completely.

In June 2022, Hinckley was given a full release. That same month, he said he was sorry for the shooting. He also reached out to the Reagan and Brady families, as well as to Jodie Foster.

Victims recovery
Thomas Delahanty recovered but had nerve damage in his left arm. He had to retire from the Metropolitan Police Department a few months after the shooting. Tim McCarthy recovered fully and was the first of the wounded men to leave the hospital. James Brady survived, but his injury caused speaking problems and partial paralysis. He used a wheelchair for the rest of his life.

Not long after the shooting, Alfred Antenucci and Frank McNamara, the two labor leaders who tried to stop Hinckley, became sick. McNamara died on September 18, 1981, six months after the shooting, at age 62. Antenucci died on May 9, 1984 at age 71.

Later, Brady and his wife, Sarah, became well-known gun control activists. They worked with Handgun Control, Inc., a lobbying group that was later renamed the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence. They also started the non-profit Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence. In 1993, the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act became law as a result of their work. Brady died on August 4, 2014, in Alexandria, Virginia, at the age of 73. After his death, the D.C. Medical Examiner said the cause of death was a homicide caused by the wounds from the 1981 shooting.

 Public reaction 
The assassination attempt was recorded by television news cameras and quickly broadcast by major U.S. networks. Early reports were confused, and some networks wrongly announced that press secretary James Brady had died and that President Ronald Reagan was seriously injured; these errors were later corrected.

The shooting shocked the nation. Many Americans followed the event live on television, newspapers printed extra editions, and public institutions held prayers and moments of silence. The Academy Awards ceremony was postponed by one day, while financial markets briefly fell before recovering the next day.

Popular culture
The 2001 Showtime movie The Day Reagan Was Shot told the story of the attack and the response in the White House. In 2015, conservative commentator Bill O'Reilly wrote a book about the shooting called Killing Reagan: The Violent Assault That Changed a Presidency. The book was made into a television movie in 2016, with Tim Matheson as Ronald Reagan and Cynthia Nixon as Nancy Reagan. In 2024, the biopic movie Reagan opened with the shooting as its first scene. Actor Dennis Quaid played Reagan in that movie.

Notes

References

Other websites

 Assassination Attempt of President Ronald Reagan (full length video)

 Coverage the assassination attempt on President Reagan as covered by CBS Radio and WCCO-AM (Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN) plus Mutual Radio.

Category:1981 crimes in the United States
Category:1980s in Washington, D.C.
Category:1980s murders in the United States
Category:Failed assassination attempts
Category:Crime in Washington, D.C.
Assassination attempt