John Hinckley Jr. to be released
 

The man who shot President Reagan in 1981 has been granted "full time convalescent leave"...

Your thoughts?
He tried to kill the POTUS, shot a few other folks in the process, my opinion is he should never get out.

Amazing a guy attempts to kill a president and leaves another man permanently brain damaged, and lives to see the light of day again. :ThmbDown:

He has been getting regular 'supervised visits' to his parents house, up to 10 days at a time, for the last 10-15 years. They let him out for a few days at a time and he didn't shoot anyone, so they kept letting him out more and more. :rolleyes:

If he was nuts when he shot Reagan, why is he not nuts now?

My insincere apologies to all the nuts out there who may have been offended by my politically incorrect use of the term.

Will he be packing?
 

Begs the question as to just how easy
it will be for him to be armed again.

He's going to be living in a swing state, too.
Which of the current candidates impress him the most?

He'll do alright for himself, I'm sure.
Phone has to be ringing off the hook for interviews. :(

Disgusting to even consider this POS for release - ever.
NO murderer should ever see the light of day again.

btw, Johnny, Jody likes TRUMP!

Well the governor of VA recently used his executive authority to grant ex-felons the right to vote, correct? Is there a waiting period before he can vote? He'll live off the government, so I'm betting he votes for your side. You should be proud.

I think the only person who needs to worry is Jody Foster

First, remember that he has not been in prison since 1981. He's been a patient at St. Elizabeth's Hospital as a result of being found not guilty by reason of insanity. Second, he's been having supervised visits with his parents for the last 15 years. All of the experts who testified at Hinckley's 2005 conditional release hearing, including the government experts, agreed that his depression and psychotic disorder were in full remission and that he should have some expanded conditions of release.

Clearly, the emotional response to who he attempted to assassinate would lead many to want to see him receive some sort of lifetime punishment. In fact, the psychiatric hospital is not exactly like prison. Early in his stay Hinckley said on normal days he would "see a therapist, answer mail, play guitar, listen to music, play pool, watch television, eat lousy food and take delicious medication."

Recently, Hinckley has been given eight 17-day visits with his parents a year. That's about a third of the year out of the hospital.

A couple of things are important to consider. One, the psychiatrists agree that he is no longer a danger to himself or others. Two, he's been outside the hospital quite often without incident.

So the question is, given the law in place at the time regarding insanity verdicts (it's been changed since then) which essentially said he was subject to confinement until doctors determined he was no longer a danger to himself or others, does it make sense to get agitated about giving him further punishment when it is simply not an option?

In 2016 Hinckley would have never been found not guilty by reason of insanity in most jurisdictions. The height of the bar has changed. If the Aurora Theater shooter wasn't insane, it would be hard to imagine who is.

The real issue is what do you do with the people who are clearly delusional and commit heinous crimes. Currently we do lock them up and throw away the key. But if you believe Hinckley's doctors, perhaps after 35 years of treatment they can be considered cured and released.

And James Brady's ultimate cause of death was determined to be the Hinkley bullet.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local...5c4_story.html

He'll immediately sign up for disability benefits, which will most likely also make him eligible for free healthcare in VA (via Medicaid). Waiting for MostPost to tell us if he'll be granted the right to vote in the election, not sure on that one.

He is barred from doing interviews

This really isn't a hand-wringing decision, imo. He shot a president and ultimately killed James Brady. He belongs in prison.

Would you want him living next to you? Would you want your wife home alone with him next door? Of course not. There's your answer. Plenty of gray in the world, not here.

Outrageous! He has First Amendment rights.

I believe he is/was mentally ill and 30+ years of his life is punishment enough.

I wonder if Mrs. Brady agrees? She may; some people are very forgiving.

Hillary should get him to speak at the DNC Hogfest and Barn Dance about how lax gun laws failed to prevent his act of violence.