James Brady

American government aide, President Reagan's Press Secretary, shot in the head on 30 March 1981 at 2:30PM EST in Washington, D.C. by John Hinckley during an assassination attempt of the President. Brady's death in 2014 was eventually ruled a homicide, caused by the gunshot wound he received 33 years earlier.

Brady survived the 1981 gunshot wound after emergency surgery, but ever since, struggled to walk, and had to cope with a paralyzed left arm and had to regain the full use of his mind and ability to talk. Brady faced daily therapy for the rest of his life in order to continue walking and talking.

After eight years of rehab and "PT" (pain and torture), he accepted an unpaid position as Vice Chairman of the National Organization on Disability, which promotes the interests of the disabled.

Filming began on 17 December 1990 of a TV story of his life, Without Warning: The James Brady Story, with Beau Bridges playing Brady, telecast on 16 June 1991. Joan Allen played his wife Sarah Brady.

With his wife Sarah Brady, who served as chair of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, Brady subsequently lobbied for stricter handgun control and assault weapon restrictions. President Clinton signed the Brady Handgun-Control Bill into law on 30 November 1993, requiring a five-day wait on gun purchases. In 1996, Brady received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Bill Clinton, the highest civilian award in the United States.

Brady married Sue Beh in 1960. The marriage ended in divorce in 1967. In 1972, Brady married Sarah Jane Kemp and they joined an Episcopal Church. Brady died on 4 August 2014 at age 73 in Alexandria, Virginia. Four days later, the medical examiner ruled that his death was a homicide, caused by the gunshot wound which he sustained in 1981. Hinckley did not face any charges for Brady's death because he had been found not guilty by reason of insanity.