Story highlights A judge granted John Hinckley Jr. full-time convalescent leave" from St. Elizabeth's Hospital

Hinckley shot President Ronald Reagan in 1981

(CNN) A federal judge on Wednesday granted John Hinckley Jr., the man who shot President Ronald Reagan in 1981, "full-time convalescent leave" from St. Elizabeth's Hospital.

The order allows Hinckley, Jr. to live full-time in Williamsburg, Virginia, but still under certain restrictions.

Hinckley and his lawyers appeared in federal court in April 2015 and argued that he had been successfully rehabilitated from his illness and that he deserved a release. But prosecutors worried that his family, struggling to pay the bills to treat his illness, could afford to take care of him.

Hinckley was 25 when he shot Reagan and three others outside the Washington Hilton 35 years ago. James Brady, the White House press secretary who was hit in the shooting, died in 2014 due to injuries from the assassination attempt, though authorities announced earlier this year that they would not pursue additional charges.

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