Reagan Shot: Violence Shocks Nation, Security Tightens
John Hinckley Jr. fired six shots at President Ronald Reagan outside the Washington Hilton Hotel, wounding four people and leaving Press Secretary James Brady with permanent brain damage that ultimately led to his death being ruled a homicide decades later. This tragedy directly spurred Congress to pass the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act in 1993, establishing the first federal background checks for firearm purchases.
March 30, 1981
45 years ago
Key Figures & Places
What Else Happened on March 30
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The plague did what Byzantine walls couldn't. Bayan I's Avaro-Slavic army surrounded Tomis on the Black Sea coast, ready to crack open another imperial strongho…
The church bells rang for evening prayer, and the slaughter began. A French soldier harassed a Sicilian woman outside the Church of the Holy Spirit in Palermo, …
Edward I unleashed his army on Berwick-upon-Tweed, slaughtering thousands of residents and erasing the town’s status as a thriving international trading port. T…
Guru Gobind Singh transformed the Sikh community by establishing the Khalsa at Anandpur Sahib, initiating followers into a disciplined order committed to defend…
Sixth Coalition troops breached the gates of Paris, forcing the city to surrender after a brutal day of fighting. This collapse shattered Napoleon’s grip on pow…
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