Julienne Bušić, an American writer and activist, died on May 21, 2026, at age 77.
Born Julienne Eden Schultz in Eugene, Oregon, in 1948, she was known for her role in the 1976 hijacking of TWA Flight 355, when she was arrested with her husband, Zvonko Bušić, and later sentenced to life in prison with early parole. She was raised in Portland, studied at the University of Oregon and Vienna University, and earned a master’s degree in German language, literature and linguistics from Portland State University.
In Oregon, she worked as a nurse’s aid, teacher and mental health therapist for abused teenagers. She and her husband also promoted Croatian independence and publicized human rights abuses in the former Yugoslavia.
Julienne Bušić, 77, American writer and activist. (death announced on this date)