John Hinckley Jr., the would-be assassin who almost killed President Ronald Reagan, will be freed after 35 years in a mental hospital, a federal judge ruled Wednesday.
The judge granted Hinckley, 61, permission to live full-time in the home of his mother in Williamsburg, Virginia, after finding that his continued treatment at St. Elizabeth's Hospital in Washington, D.C., is "no longer clinically warranted or beneficial."
Hinckley could be released as soon as Aug. 5 pending certain conditions, and must live with his mother for at least the first full year of his release, wrote U.S. District Judge Paul Friedman. He could then be allowed to live in a separate home either alone or with roommates — provided that members of his treatment team approve.
