ON THIS DAY IN UNITED STATES HISTORY
March 30, 1981
President Ronald Reagan is Shot
On this day in 1981, an assasination attempt was made on President Ronald Reagan by John Hinckley, Jr. Unlike
many previous assassination attempts, this one was not politically motivated. It was done in an attempt to impress
actress Jodie Foster.
Hinckley was found not guilty by reason of insanity in June of the following year which prompted an outcry from the
public and lead to the Insanity Defense Reform Act of 1984. Shortly after the trial, Hinckley stated that this act
was "the greatest love offering in the history of the world" and didn't understand why Foster was not
impressed.
Hinckley was confined to a psychiatric hospital until 1999 when he was allowed to visit his parents. Those
priviledges were revoked when it was found that he had smuggled materials about Jodie Foster back into the
hospital. Since then after some legal wrangling, he has been allowed more visits but has not been released.
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