Update: After keeping an eye on John Hinckley for decades, the federal courts dropped all restrictions Wednesday on the man who tried to assassinate President Ronald Reagan. “After 41 years 2 months and 15 days, FREEDOM AT LAST!!!” Hinckley tweeted, per CNN. He no longer faces any restrictions on his internet activity or movements. When Hinckley opened fire in 1981, he also shot White House press secretary James Brady, Secret Service agent Timothy McCarthy, and Washington police officer Thomas Delahanty, per NPR. Hinckley had planned to perform a concert in New York next month, but the venue canceled the show on Wednesday, per Rolling Stone. The Market Hotel’s Instagram post sounded like the decision was made reluctantly. Our story from June 1 follows:
Hinckley was confined to a mental hospital in Washington for more than two decades after a jury found him not guilty by reason of insanity in shooting Reagan. But starting in 2003 Friedman began allowing Hinckley to live for longer stretches in the community with requirements like attending therapy and restrictions on where he can travel. He’s been living full-time in Virginia since 2016, though still under restrictions. Those include: allowing officials access to his electronic devices, email, and online accounts; being barred from traveling to places where he knows there will be someone protected by the Secret Service; and giving three days’ notice if he wants to travel more than 75 miles from his home.
