Man Who Shot Reagan at Hotel That Hosted WHCD Says Venue Is ‘Just Not a Secure Place’

John Hinckley Jr./X

John Hinckley Jr., who shot President Ronald Reagan in 1981 outside the Washington Hilton, said the hotel is “just not a secure” venue.

On Saturday, a gunman was arrested near the main security screening area at the hotel, where President Donald Trump, other U.S. officials, and members of the press had gathered for the annual White House Correspondents’ Dinner. After shots rang out, Trump was whisked away by Secret Service. A law enforcement officer was struck in their bulletproof vest. No one was killed. The suspect, Cole Tomas Allen, made his first court appearance on Monday and did not enter a plea.

The venue has been criticized for its seemingly less-than-rigorous security.

In an interview with TMZ, Hinckley said he thought it was “spooky” that the incident “took place at the same hotel as mine did.”

Hinckley told TMZ the Washington Hilton should stop hosting such high-profile events “because bad things keep happening” and “it’s just not a secure place to hold big events.”

Reagan’s would-be assassin went on to say that on March 30, 1981, security at the hotel was “lax,” as evidenced by the fact that he managed to plant himself among a group of reporters who had gathered outside to wait for Reagan to leave the hotel, where the president had just given a speech.

Using a revolver, Hinckley shot Reagan, a police officer, a Secret Service agent, and then-White House Press Secretary James Brady, who was left disabled and died in 2014. His death was ruled a homicide resulting from the injuries he sustained in the shooting.

Hinckley was tried and found not guilty by reason of insanity. He said he was motivated by a desire to impress actress Jodie Foster, whom Hinckley had become obsessed with after seeing the 1976 film Taxi Driver. In 2016, Hinckley was released after spending more than three decades in psychiatric care. He was given unconditional release in 2022.

After a would-be assassin shot Trump in the ear at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania in 2024, Hinckley tweeted, “Violence is not the way to go. Give peace a chance.”

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