Jerry Parr: Secret Service agent who protected President Reagan

Early interest and career

As a child Parr was inspired to join the Secret Service after seeing the 1939 film Code of the Secret Service, which starred the future president as agent "Brass" Bancroft. That early fascination led him into a career with the Service, where he trained in protective techniques, motorcade procedures and rapid medical response. Over his years of duty he worked on presidential details and in support roles that required split-second judgment under pressure.

Role in the 1981 assassination attempt

On March 30, 1981, when an assailant opened fire outside the Washington Hilton, Parr was among the agents assigned to the presidential party. He is best remembered for quickly pushing President Reagan into a waiting limousine and for directing the motorcade to George Washington University Hospital. Medical staff later revealed the president had suffered internal injuries; Parr's choice of immediate transport and his on-scene decisions have been credited by many commentators with contributing to Reagan's survival.

Notable actions and responsibilities

• Rapid protective response at the scene of the 1981 shooting.
• Coordination of emergency movement and selection of a suitable medical facility.
• Routine presidential protection duties requiring security planning and threat assessment.

Legacy and recognition

Parr's conduct during the attack drew public attention to the work of the Secret Service and to the importance of training for high-risk protective missions. He is often cited in discussions of presidential security and emergency procedural improvements that followed the incident. While his whole career encompassed many assignments, the events of March 30 remain the most widely noted episode in his public biography.

Further reading

For more on the Secret Service and presidential protection procedures, see the Service overview at Secret Service. Contemporary discussions of the 1981 attempt and its aftermath appear in historical summaries of the Reagan presidency and in accounts of executive-branch security developments.