On August 4th, 2014 former White House Press Secretary James Scott Brady passed away. Mr. Brady affectionately known as “Bear,” died from complications associated with a gunshot wound he obtain 33 years ago during an assassination attempt on President Ronald Reagan. In 1981, Brady was the White House Press Secretary a position he maintain for eight years.

After sustaining the injury and going through a period of intense rehabilitation, Brady and his wife Sarah Brady lobbied for stricter gun control in the United States. His activism led to the introduction of the Brady Bill which was enacted in 1993 by President Bill Clinton. This Bill made it a requirement for FBI background checks to be conducted prior to obtain a gun license.

Former President Bill Clinton later awarded Brady with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, lauding his efforts as having saved millions of American from potential gun violence. Brady leaves behind Sarah Brady and his two children James Scott Brady Jr. and Mellissa Brady.

Work Cited

Adam Edelman, James Brady dead at 73, New York Daily News (August 5 2014), http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/white-house-press-secretary-james-brady-wounded-attempted-1981-assassination-president-ronald-reagan-dead-73-article-1.1891303#ixzz3CvY9O5J5

Jon Thurber, James S. Brady, Reagan’s press secretary and survivor of 1981 shooting, dies at 73, Washington Post (August 4 2014) http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/james-s-brady-reagans-press-secretary-and-survivor-of-1981-shooting-dies-at-73/2014/08/04/4af0af70-c5da-11df-94e1-c5afa35a9e59_story.html

“James Brady,” Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. (Last visited September 8 2014 2:20pm), http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Brady