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Courtesy Ronald Reagan Library

Courtesy Ronald Reagan Library

Courtesy Ronald Reagan Library

Secret Service agents and D.C. police officers rushed at Hinckley as he unleashed a fusillade of bullets, but they were too late. Hinckley got off six shots in just 1.7 seconds; his bullets struck four people, including the president.

AP Images

Respected by reporters and White House staff members alike, press secretary James Brady made a last-second decision to attend Reagan’s speech at the Washington Hilton hotel. He was the first person wounded by one of Hinckley’s bullets and suffered a devastating head wound.

AP Images

That morning, D.C. police officer Thomas Delahanty had this official photograph taken in case anything bad should ever happen to him. Stationed at the rope line, he had just turned to orient himself to the president when he heard gunshots. He was struck in the back by Hinckley’s second shot.

AP Images

Secret Service agent Timothy McCarthy had hoped to avoid duty at the Hilton so his brand- new suit wouldn’t get wet in the rain. After opening the limousine’s door, McCarthy heard gunfire; swiveling, he became a human shield for the president. He was struck in the chest by Hinckley’s fourth bullet.

Jack Buxbaum/The Washington Post

After a frantic car ride from the White House, Nancy Reagan rushed into the emergency room entrance of George Washington University Hospital, where she learned that her husband had been wounded. A few steps behind Mrs. Reagan’s left shoulder was Secret Service agent George Opfer, who had told the first lady about the shooting.

Frank Johnston/The Washington Post

At a press conference a few days after the shooting, Dr. Benjamin Aaron, who had performed surgery on the president, pointed to a spot on Dr. Joseph Giordano’s left side to demonstrate where Hinckley’s sixth bullet had struck Reagan. Giordano, head of GW’s trauma teams, had led a recent effort to improve the hospital’s emergency medical care.

Courtesy Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation

In the hours after his surgery, Reagan jotted a number of notes to doctors and nurses, and this was one of his first. The president also wrote about his difficulty breathing. “Why can’t I...”—visible just above “All in all I’d rather be in Phil.”—was almost certainly the beginning of a question about why he couldn’t breathe.

James Thresher/The Washington Post

Lyn Nofziger, a gruff White House aide, provided the first confirmation that the president had been wounded to reporters during a press conference outside the hospital. Watching Nofziger was Larry Speakes, a deputy White House press secretary. Nofizger later told reporters about the jokes delivered by the president while he was in the emergency room.

D. Gorton/The New York Times/Redux

Secretary of State Alexander Haig addressed reporters in the White House press room and famously asserted that he was “in control.” Standing next to Haig was National Security Advisor Richard V. Allen, who struggled to contain his shock when Haig mangled the order of presidential succession during the briefing.