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John W. Hinckley Jr., known for attempting<span style="color: Red;">*</span>to assassinate President<span style="color: Red;">*</span>Reagan in 1981, is set to be released from a psychiatric hospital. WIBBITZ
A federal court judge rules that John Hinckley Jr., the would-be assassin of President Reagan, no longer poses a danger and can be freed into the custody of his mother. Hinckley, 61, is seen here in a 2003 file photo.(Photo: Evan Vucci, AP)
John W. Hinckley Jr., who spent more than 35 years in a psychiatric hospital following<span style="color: Red;">*</span>his attempt to<span style="color: Red;">*</span>assassinate President<span style="color: Red;">*</span>Reagan in 1981, will be released into his mother's care as early as next month<span style="color: Red;">*</span>under a federal court order.
In a 103-page court order, U.S. District Judge Paul L. Friedman of Washington wrote<span style="color: Red;">*</span>that Hinckley, 61, no longer poses a danger to himself or others.
The<span style="color: Red;">*</span>court said<span style="color: Red;">*</span>experts have found that Hinckley's<span style="color: Red;">*</span>major depression and psychotic disorder<span style="color: Red;">*</span>"are in full and sustained remission and have been for more than 20 years" and that he is "clinically<span style="color: Red;">*</span>ready" to leave the hospital.<span style="color: Red;">*</span>He could be freed as soon as Aug. 5.
“I don’t like flipping around the TV, I want to do things,” a court document quoted Hinckley<span style="color: Red;">*</span>saying, according to the Associated Press.<span style="color: Red;">*</span>He also has said he wants to “fit in” and be “a good citizen.”
If he adheres to strict guidelines<span style="color: Red;">*</span>regarding his activities, Hinckley could be fully removed from<span style="color: Red;">*</span>court control in as soon as a<span style="color: Red;">*</span>year.
Hinckley, who<span style="color: Red;">*</span>shot President Reagan and three others outside the Washington Hilton hotel on March 30, 1981,<span style="color: Red;">*</span>was found<span style="color: Red;">*</span>not guilty by reason of insanity at a 1982 trial and<span style="color: Red;">*</span>ordered confined for treatment at St. Elizabeth's Hospital in Washington.
The release, cast as "convalescent leave," is subject to strict guidelines.<span style="color: Red;">*</span>Hinckley must live at his mother's home in Williamsburg, Va., and is restricted to a 50-mile<span style="color: Red;">*</span>radius of the location. He<span style="color: Red;">*</span>must<span style="color: Red;">*</span>inform his doctors before going to any<span style="color: Red;">*</span>private residence.
Hinckley also must turn over information about his cellphone and vehicles he will be driving, and is barred<span style="color: Red;">*</span>from accessing social media, uploading any content or erasing any browser history from his computer.
He must undergo<span style="color: Red;">*</span>treatment at St. Elizabeth's Hospital no less than once a month. For each visit, the U.S. Secret Service will provide Hinckley's time of departure from Williamsburg as well as the intended travel route two weeks in advance, the court says. Hinckley can make the trip unaccompanied.
The court order requires that Hinckley "shall have no contact whatsoever" with specific individuals, including actress Jodie Foster. In a letter<span style="color: Red;">*</span>to the actress written on the eve of the assassination attempt,<span style="color: Red;">*</span>Hinckley displayed an obsession with Foster and emphasized that his act was an attempt to impress her.
Foster played a child prostitute in the 1976 film Taxi Driver, which focuses on a disturbed character based in part on the diaries of Arthur Bremer, who tried to kill George Wallace. Hinckley's obsession included traveling to Yale University, where Foster was a student in an attempt to meet her. <span style="color: Red;">*</span>He left her notes, letters and poems, but failed to establish a personal relationship.
He initially began stalking President Carter and was arrested at one point for having firearms in his luggage at the Nashville airport where Carter was to make a campaign appearance.<span style="color: Red;">*</span>After the 1980 election, he shifted his focus to Reagan.
My father did more than say the Lords Prayer He lived it in forgiving John Hinkley Jr...Maybe we should do the same....Mike Reagan
— Michael Reagan (@ReaganWorld) July 27, 2016
The court order also says Hinckley is barred from communicating with members of Reagan's family, or any member of the family of James Brady, Reagan's then-press secretary who suffered permanent brain damage during the<span style="color: Red;">*</span>assassination attempt.
The court order further<span style="color: Red;">*</span>says Hinckley must participate in "structured activities" in Williamsburg, such as volunteer positions or paid employment approved by his doctors.
In addition, Hinckley<span style="color: Red;">*</span>must adhere to strict guidelines regarding the<span style="color: Red;">*</span>media. "If approached by media, Mr. Hinckley and the members of his family will decline to speak with them, and if the media persists,<span style="color: Red;">*</span>Mr. Hinckley and the members of his family will withdraw," the order said.
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