Why was John Hinckley Jr found not guilty by reason of insanity?

Hinckley was reportedly seeking fame to impress actress Jodie Foster, with whom he had an obsessive fixation. He was found not guilty by reason of insanity and remained under institutional psychiatric care for over three decades….

John Hinckley Jr.
Total views	621 thousand
Updated: December 3, 2021

What happened to the man that shot Ronald Reagan?

A jury found Hinckley not guilty by reason of insanity in 1982. Hinckley proceeded to stay at St. Elizabeths Hospital, in Washington, D.C., for more than three decades. In 2016, he was released from the hospital and has been living in Williamsburg, Virginia, at his mother’s house, according to CNN.

Was Hinckley schizophrenic?

In Hinckley’s trial, there was no question that he was a troubled young man. The defense argued that Hinckley should not be held accountable for the shootings because he was suffering from a major depressive disorder and from schizophrenia. A jury found Hinckley not guilty by reason of insanity.

What is Hinckley mental illness?

Defense psychiatrists told the jury that Hinckley suffered from various forms of schizophrenia, a serious mental illness characterized by a severe break with reality, delusions and major depression.

Who was shot along with Ronald Reagan?

White House Press Secretary James Brady, Secret Service agent Tim McCarthy, and DC police officer Thomas Delahanty were also wounded. All three survived, but Brady suffered brain damage and was permanently disabled.

What was Hinckley’s mental illness?

All the government psychiatrists concluded that Hinckley was legally sane–that he appreciated the wrongfulness of his act–at the time of the shooting. All three defense psychiatrists diagnosed Hinckley as psychotic–and legally insane–at the time of the shooting.

How did Nash develop schizophrenia?

In an email to a colleague in the mid-1990s, Nash said, “I emerged from irrational thinking, ultimately, without medicine other than the natural hormonal changes of aging,” according to The New York Times.

Was John Hinckley a psychopath?

All three defense psychiatrists diagnosed Hinckley as psychotic–and legally insane–at the time of the shooting. Further evidence of the severity of Hinckley’s mental problems came in May, two days before his twenty-sixth birthday, when he attempted suicide by overdosing on Valium.

How old is Hinckley Jr?

66 years (May 29, 1955)
John Hinckley Jr./Age

Mr. Hinckley, 66, who tried to assassinate President Ronald Reagan in 1981, will be “untethered to the court” next year after a judge’s ruling on Monday, his lawyer said.