John Lennon's Upper West Side Killer Denied Parole For 12th Time

UPPER WEST SIDE, NY — Mark David Chapman, the man who shot and killed Beatles star John Lennon on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in 1980, was denied parole for the 12th time, New York Corrections officials said Monday.

Chapman, who is serving a 20-years-to-life sentence at the Green Havens Correctional Facility in New York, appeared before the parole board at the end of August, according to the Department of Corrections.

The parole board has chosen to keep Chapman, 67, locked up every two years since he first became eligible for parole in 2000.

Yoko Ono, Lennon's widow who still lives on the Upper West Side, has sent a letter to the parole board every two years pushing to keep Chapman in prison, CNN reported.

The transcript of Chapman's most recent parole interview isn't available yet, but he previously called his decision to kill Lennon "very selfish."

“I assassinated him ... because he was very, very, very famous and that’s the only reason and I was very, very, very, very much seeking self-glory. Very selfish,” Chapman said in the 2020 parole hearing.

Chapman will have his next shot at freedom in February 2024.

The Murder

After gaining inspiration from the protagonist in J.D. Salinger's novel "The Catcher in the Rye," Chapman flew from Hawaii to New York City on Dec. 6, 1980, with a gun, and checked into an Upper West Side YMCA.

A couple of days later, Chapman spent the day waiting outside of Lennon's home in the Dakota Building at 1 W. 72nd St.

Lennon eventually came out and signed an autograph on Chapman's copy of the "Double Fantasy" album.

Lennon returned to his home later that night where Chapman was still waiting with his gun, and as the legendary musician walked by him, he fired five shots into his back.

The first police officers to arrive minutes later found Chapman standing on West 72nd Street reading "Catcher in the Rye."

Lennon was rushed to Roosevelt Hospital, where he was pronounced dead a short time later.