John Hinckley Jr., who tried to kill Ronald Reagan, announces plans to open music store in Virginia

Colin Warren-Hicks, The Virginian-Pilot on Dec 4, 2024

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NORFOLK, Va. — John Hinckley Jr., the man who attempted to assassinate President Ronald Reagan in 1981, wrote on social media this week that he planned to open a music store in the Williamsburg area. On Monday, he posted on X that he’d be opening a business in Williamsburg at 455 Merrimac Trail.

“Grand opening is in a week or two!”

The property is located in York County. However, as of Wednesday, the York County Commissioner of the Revenue’s office did not have a record of a business license for a music store associated with the address mentioned in Hinckley’s post.

The property at 455 Merrimac Trail is a small strip mall owned by ESS Storage Acquisition Seventy Two LLC, a storage facility rental company based in Salt Lake City, Utah. Company representatives haven’t responded to calls about a rental agreement with Hinckley.

In 1982, Hinckley was found not guilty by reason of insanity after shooting and wounding Reagan; three others including, James Brady, White House press secretary, were shot and wounded.

Hinckley has lived in the area for years after a federal judge released him from St. Elizabeths Hospital, a psychiatric facility, in Washington, D.C., and allowed him to live with his mother in Williamsburg.

Jo Ann Hinckley died in 2021 and Hinckley was released from court oversight in 2022. Hinckley launched a music career and last month posted on X that he’d “be doing a show” in Newport News on Feb. 1.

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(Virginian-Pilot freelancer Ben Swenson contributed to the story.)

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