The insanity ruling that sent President Ronald Reagan's would-be assassin, John Hinckley Jr., to a government psychiatric hospital rather than prison was handed down 34 years ago, but its repercussions still affect hundreds, if not thousands, of people who commit a crime and also have mental illness.
These consequences and the insanity defense itself were forced into the national spotlight again on Wednesday, when a federal judge said Hinckley would be released to live with his elderly mother in Williamsburg, Va.
The 1982 verdict sparked fierce argument over use of the insanity defense. In response, Congress and states created stricter rules to govern the insanity defense or in some cases abolished the defense altogether.
Before attempting the assassination, Hinckley had grown obsessed with the movie Taxi Driver, in which the protagonist plots to assassinate a presidential candidate. He called and sent letters to Jodie Foster, one of the movie's stars.
