John Hinckley, Jr., the man who shot President Ronald Reagan and three others in a 1981 assassination attempt in Washington, DC has been granted his unconditional release from prison by a federal judge, CBS News reports.
After federal prosecutors, the defense team and a series of mental health professionals testified that Hinckley was not a threat to himself or others, Judge Paul Friedman, a senior judge for the US District Court in Washington, DC, said the decision to release Hinckley was not done in haste and that the 67-year-old had fulfilled his obligations for release.
Hinckley shot Reagan as the President left a Washington hotel in April 1981, months after being inaugurated. Hinckley cited an obsession with actress Jody Foster as his motivation for shooting Reagan, hoping that the act would win over her adoration. In the shooting, Hinckley hit a Secret Service agent and a DC Metropolitan police officer on the scene. He also shot Reagan Press Secretary James Brady in the head; Brady later became a champion for gun control legislation.