Secret Service agent who heroically jumped onto JFK’s car during assassination dies at 93

Former Secret Service Agent Clint Hill, who famously jumped onto President John F. Kennedy's car during the 1963 assassination, died on Friday at the age of 93, his publisher announced Monday.

No cause of death has been announced, but Hill died at his home in Belvedere, California, according to his publisher Gallery Books, an imprint of Simon & Schuster, the Associated Press reported.

Hill, who was tasked with protecting former first lady Jacqueline Kennedy, heroically jumped on the back of the presidential limousine during the assassination, after he heard a gunshot go off in Dealey Plaza, and saw the president slump forward in his seat. 

The former secret service agent, who was haunted by the events of the assassination for most of his life, was promoted for his actions and given Secret Service awards. But he resigned at the age of 43 at the urging of his doctors. 

“If I had reacted just a little bit quicker. And I could have, I guess,” Hill told Mike Wallace on CBS’ 60 Minutes in 1975. "And I’ll live with that to my grave.”

Hill has repeatedly stated that he would have given his life for the president, and that if he had gotten to the president faster he could have taken the third bullet that ultimately killed Kennedy. 

He has also been credited with saving Jacqueline Kennedy after helping her off the trunk of the limousine during the shooting and back into the vehicle. One former aide claimed that she would have likely fallen off the trunk without Hill, and been hit by other cars, per the New York Times.

The former Secret Service agent co-authored several books decades after the assassination, including “Mrs. Kennedy and Me” and “Five Presidents." 

Hill is survived by his wife, his two sons, five grandchildren, and two step-grandsons. A private funeral will be held in Washington, D.C. at a later date.

Misty Severi is a news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.